Everlasting
By LadysWords

Previously on Everlasting:

After he left the Great Hall with Snape, and headed around a corridor they saw a crowd of students, and could hear Filch yelling, "I'll kill, ya. I'll kill, ya!"

"I'll go fetch Dumbledore." He said to Snape, who nodded.

"And I'll get professor McGonagall. Potter's sure to be involved."

They quickly left. 'Something must have happened.' Ed thought as he quickly returned to the Great Hall and found the headmaster still in his seat. "Headmaster, something's happened." He informed him, quickly describing what was happening in the corridor.

When they returned they found Filch holding Potter. "Argus!" shouted Dumbledore, to prevent something the latter would regret doing.

"Argus, I-" He heard Dumbledore continue, but then he suddenly fell short as he saw the blood stained message. He calmly said, "Everyone will proceed to their dormitories immediately. Everyone except, you three."

Obediently the students left, and once they did Dumbledore said, "She's not dead, Argus. She has been petrified."

"Ah, thought so!" Lockhart exclaimed. Ed groaned and thought, 'No, he didn't.'

"So unfortunate I wasn't there, I know exactly the counter-curse that could have saved her." The man boasted.

"I somehow doubt it would have changed a thing, Lockhart. Instead of the cat, it perhaps would have been you instead." Ed stated to the man. 'In all honestly, I genuinely hate that man for his idiocy, but someone has to look after his safety, since I doubt he could take care of himself.'

Ignoring him Dumbledore continued on saying "But how she has been petrified, I cannot say." Abruptly Mr. Filch pointed his finger at Potter. The delinquent that Mr. Filch, with all his being, believed had done it.

"Ask him, it's him that's done it. You saw what he wrote on the wall." The man pointed at the wall behind him, just in case someone hadn't noticed it in the first place.

"It's not true, sir. I swear I never touched Ms. Norris." Potter finally began to defend himself.

"Rubbish!" Filch cut Potter off.

"If I might, Headmaster." Dumbledore looked at Snape and nodded for him to continue. "Perhaps, Potter and his friends were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time." Snape seemingly defending the boy he normally insulted.

Ed blinked in surprise, 'Severus is defending Potter? The boy he hates the most?'

"However, considering the circumstances I, for one, do not recall seeing Potter at dinner." Ed took back what he thought. 'I should have known. The man hasn't gained any sympathy. In fact I doubt he even knows what the word means. He's definitely not showing any towards Potter, considering the way he treats him.'

"I am afraid that's my doing, Severus." Lockhart interrupted Snape, "You see, Harry was answering my fan mail."

"That's why Ron and I went looking for him, professor. We'd just found him when he said -" Granger began.

"Yes, Ms. Granger?" Snape implored her to continue, most likely to use anything that she was about to say against Potter.

"When I said I wasn't hungry. We were heading back to the common room when we found Ms. Norris." Potter suddenly continued speaking for her.

Ed frowned and narrowed his eyes 'He's just made that up, hasn't he?'

"Innocent until proven guilty, Severus." Dumbledore merely said to the man.

"The Headmaster is right. I highly doubt Potter, despite his past rule breaking, could commit a crime like this one Severus." Ed agreed.

"M-my cat has been petrified! I wanna see some punishment!" Flinch yelled desperately.

"We will be able to cure her, Argus. As I understand it, Madam Sprout has a very healthy growth of mandrakes, and I am sure she will be able to create a potion to cure Ms. Norris." Dumbledore informed the grieving man, for his benefit. "And in the mean time, I strongly recommend caution to all." Dumbledore said to everyone, while eyeing Potter and the other two.

Edward frowned, before Dumbledore could leave he quickly informed him. "Headmaster, whatever has been unleashed from the Chamber has free reign, and another attack his highly probable, I would suggest a dueling club for the students' protection incase something happens."

"If this continues, then yes." Was all Dumbledore had said in response. Somehow, he felt as if the cat was just the beginning. He was now was worried, and knew it was only a matter of time before something more drastic than the petrifying of a cat would take place. Like a human becoming a victim, for instance. He knew it would happen, it was only a matter of time. The only thing he could do for now was keep an eye on the students, for their safety. It was only when he returned to his office later that evening that he realized there was only one student he hadn't seen the whole day, Ginny Weasley.

Chapter 12: Not To Be Forgotten

"Human memory is a marvelous, but fallacious instrument. The memories which lie within us are not carved in stone; not only do they tend to become erased as the years go by, but often they change, or even increase by incorporating extraneous features."

-Prima Levi

'There he goes being conceited again…' Ed thought to himself as he listened to Professor Lockhart inform the student body currently gathered around him in the Great Hall about the dueling club.

Only a week had passed since his theory was proven correct. Colin Creevey, a first year from Gryffindor house, had been petrified. Dumbledore had informed them in the staff meeting when the attack occurred.

'I can't believe the idiot actually had the nerve to steal my idea. He must've overheard me speaking to Dumbledore…'

"In light of the dark events of these past few weeks, Professor Dumbledore has granted me permission to start this little dueling club, to train you all in case you ever need to defend yourselves. As I myself have done on countless occasions . For full details, see my published works." He heard Professor Lockhart announce to the gathered students.

"Let me introduce you my assistant, professor Snape!" Lockhart bellowed enthusiastically, waving his arms for emphasis and unneeded flair.

"As if they didn't already know their own professor, Lockhart." Snape muttered aloud, earning a few chuckles from the students that had heard him. Snape's arms were folded as he stalked along the stage towards Lockhart, clutching his wand as he did so.

Lockhart continued as if his colleague had yet to speak at all yet, voice obnoxiously loud and filled with the arrogant, self-confidence that grated on your nerves. "He has sportingly agreed to help me with this demonstration. Now, I don't want any of you youngsters to worry, you'll still have your potions master when I'm through with him."

'Sportingly my arse, that man would not willingly help in this sort of matter, unless he was ordered to, or for his own benefit…like humiliating your arse, Lockhart...' Edward thought to himself.

Snape looked at Lockhart in a way that suggested he was ready to murder him . Ed briefly wondered why Lockhart was still smiling. If Snape had been looking at other people like that, he knew that most of the students would have hightailed it in the opposite direction long before the battle had even started.

" - Never fear." Lockhart finished speaking as he winked to a group of girls who swooned over him.

'Never Fear? You should be the one fearing him, Lockhart.' Edward continued to muse to himself.

To acknowledge the fact that it was an honorable duel both wizards faced each other in the middle of the stage and raised their wands in respect, and then respectfully bowed to each other. They walked back a safe distance away from each other.

Lockhart counted down to the duel slowly, "One… Two… Three!"

Immediately taking the advantage of Lockhart's delayed reaction, Snape had already yelled "Expelliarmus!"

As soon as the spell was spoken, scarlet light was produced from Snape's wand and Lockhart was blasted off his feet, causing the crowd to laugh as he landed on the floor with a hard thump his wand flying in another direction.

Ed smirked to himself. 'I Knew it.' He could not help but chuckle at the man's humiliation.

Trying to not make an actual fool of himself, Lockhart quickly recovered and announced, "An excellent idea, Professor Snape. If you don't mind me saying, it was pretty obvious, uh - what you were about to do, and if I had wanted to stop you, it would have been only too easy..."

'Liar' Edward rolled his eyes as he continued to listen patiently to the Lockhart's conceited speech. How the man had been sorted into Ravenclaw was beyond him.

"Perhaps it would be prudent to first teach the students how to block unfriendly spells." Snape drawled as he spoke to Lockhart.

"An excellent suggestion Professor Snape!" Lockhart exclaimed.

Ed rolled his eyes. 'Well, that much was obvious, seeing as how that's the whole point of this dueling club.'

"Uh, let's have a volunteer pair... Potter, Weasley! How about you two?" Lockhart exclaimed excitedly, throwing his arms out to them.

"Weasley's wand causes devastations from even the simplest of spells... We'll end up sending Potter to the hospital wing in a matchbox. How about someone of my house? Malfoy perhaps?" Snape said, overruling Lockhart's suggestion.

It was no secret that Potter and Malfoy were rivals; it was even a known fact among the staff members.

Like their professors before them, they walked to the middle.

"Wands at the ready!" Lockhart announced to the two new duelers on stage.

"Scared Potter?" Edward heard Malfoy mock, while he mirrored Potter's hold on his wand.

Potter smirked and replied, "You wish." As the two boys proceeded to walk back to a respective distance apart, Lockhart counted to three and Malfoy, like his Professor before him, reacted before the blond professor had even finished saying the last number.

"Everte Statum!"

As soon as the spell hit Potter, the boy had flown backwards and ended up hitting the floor as Lockhart previously had. He groaned as he shook his head. 'That was pitiful.'

Potter recovered soon, and as he stood up again he yelled, "Rictusempra!"

As the spell hit Malfoy the boy flew back to the floor where Snape stood watching with a façade of disinterest.

This duel was beginning to remind him of a pendulum: just watching the same thing over and over again.

Snape glared at the platinum haired boy and roughly picked him up, growling under his breath about the pathetic fighting skills of his underling.

"I said to disarm only!" Lockhart reminded to the two duelists who stood front and center.

Ignoring what Lockhart said Malfoy yelled, "Serpensortia!"

Immediately, a snake sprang forth from Malfoy's wand. He smirked, knowing full well that Potter was at a loss on what to do.

"Don't move Potter, I'll get rid of it for you." Snape said lazily, but was stopped as Lockhart interrupted him.

"Allow me, Professor Snape. Avlate Envalia!" Lockhart snarled while pointing his wand at the snake, an uneasy smile on his face.

'What sort of spell was that?' Edward pondered. The incantation was new to him. 'I wonder what it -"

The snake, instead of vanishing, flew up a few inches in the air before landing once more with a thud.

Edward groaned miserably. 'Is the man truly an idiot? Lockhart definitely made that one up.' He stared in disbelieve as the snake, once again, landed as ungracefully as possible. If Ed didn't know better, he'd say the snake was even more pissed considering its threatening poise towards the closest student.

'Only Lockhart could piss off humans and animals with his idiocy.' He groaned and pinched his nose. Looking up, Ed saw Snape scowling at Lockhart.

"Leave him alone!" The blond alchemist heard Potter hiss out loud, and, abruptly, the snake slumped to the floor, seemingly docile.

All Justin Finch-Fletchley could do was stutter out, "What're you playing at?" Before the lad was hurriedly sprinting out of the dueling club. The other students and professors stared at Potter in newfound fear, the majority of them wide-eyed and anxious.

"Vipera Evanasca." Snape muttered, quickly obliterating the snake.

'Why are people staring at Potter like that? All he did was make the snake leave that boy alone, so why is everyone stunned?' Ed wondered, eyes narrowing suspiciously. 'Is the ability to communicate with a snake a bad sign of some sort in the wizarding world?' Looks like he had some research to do on this matter.

OoO

The ability to communicate with snakes was known as being a Parselmouth.

Now Ed understood why no else had understood Potter beside himself. Being a Parselmouth was a rarity nowadays, and something that was the mark of a dark wizard. He had been curious about the students' and staffs' reactions to the fact that Potter could communicate with a snake, and so he had found himself doing research.

'So that's why the students fear him now.' Ed closed his book with thud.

Since Ed didn't know much of his mother that meant his father must have been a Parslemouth as well…

Now Edward understood what his ability was called. When he'd traveled on his own, he had occasionally spoken to snakes and understood the ability was considered dark. Though, based on the reaction of the majority of the student body, Ed came to the conclusion that perhaps he should keep this ability to himself.

Some things were better kept secret. Like his Philosopher's stone.

OoO

It was once again winter. Edward shivered. Winter had always reminded him of when he'd attended school at the Durmstrang Institute which lay somewhere in Northern Norway. He couldn't precisely recall where. Though, it was only a few years ago that he had gone to revisit Kirkenes to see an old acquaintance.

July, 1982

The frigid town of Kirkenes in Norway had not changed one bit since he had left. It had been Durmstrang's equivalent of Hogsmeade; a nice, small wizarding village where it's students could relax.

Only a few moments after he apparated on the bank his teeth began chattering, even if it was already noon. Edward clutched his long red furred cloak tighter to him.

As he looked at the small wizarding town, he searched to find the sign of The Pixie Café, only to discover it stood directly before him 'Perfect.'

"I trust you haven't been waiting long." Edward heard male's a deep baritone voice. He looked up to see the man who he had been waiting for, his former professor at Durmstrang Institute.

In front of him stood a tall man with broad shoulders, a rounded face, black hair and a mustache.

"Professor Hoffmann, I presume?" Edward hadn't seen the man in decades. It was justified that he wouldn't precisely remember what the man's appearance was.

"Indeed, it's been a long while. Though, please, call me Berthold outside of school grounds, seeing as how we are acquaintances and of the same profession." Hoffmann regarded him kindly, the smallest of smiles on his face.

"Ah, yes. I'll remember that." He grinned. Professor Hoffman had been his Darks Arts professor while he had attended the institution.

"I'd read that you're working at Hogwarts currently." The man held out his hand in greeting, Ed shook it.

Professor Hoffmann was a gentleman that reminded him greatly of Dumbledore because of his intelligence, kindness, and glasses. The difference was this man's age, and his rather youthful appearance. The younger professor was wearing a long, thick black fur coat that reached down to his knees, it resulted in making the man seem older than he was, yet his black hair and youthful ebony eyes marked him.

"I was just posted the other week. Thank you for answering my letter, and having this meeting of sorts." Edward informed the man quickly sipping at the coffee he had ordered earlier.

Berthold just waved his hand nonchalantly, "No trouble. Seeing old friends is a good thing," But he frowned, "I suppose you haven't found a way to remember your past though have you?"

Ed shook his head, the mention of his blank past turning the mood melancholy, "Sadly, No. I haven't. I hope with this new job, I will."

"A change of profession doesn't always generate results." Berthold informed him quietly.

"I am aware of that," He couldn't help but say that, "but one can only hope."

Berthold nodded softly in agreement, "True… Now why have you contacted me?"

"I need help finding the Philosophers Stone that Grindelwald stole from my father. That, and help regaining my memories." Ed demanded quietly, looking up at his professor sharply. If the man didn't do something… Yet, Hoffmann just looked at him and looked at him.

"I can help you search for the Philosophers Stone," He sighed,"I may have some contacts that can help you. Your memories however…truthfully, I believe that memories do not entirely disappear... when we forget them, I believe that they still linger somewhere in the recess of your mind. As such, I believe that your memories have just been repressed. The first thing we may have to find out is exactly why you have you lost your memories..." Berthold informed him solemnly.

OoO

"Elric!" Ed jerked at Snape's voice, breaking his train of thought about what Berthold had said when he'd visited the man.

"Yes?" Ed replied finally, blinking up at the dark haired professor before him.

Snape frowned, eyes already narrowed, "Are you sure the Weasley girl has something to do with the attacks? It seems highly improbable."

Ed nodded confidently, "I'm certain of it Snape…Just because the rest of the staff thinks otherwise, doesn't mean I'm incorrect."

He watched the potions master walk back and turn a left to leave. He frowned.

Why did he feel like history was repeating itself?

OoO

Ed decided to visit Hagrid one afternoon. The half giant had requested his presence in that overly small hut of his. It was then that he saw a strange thing. The Weasley girl was holding dead roosters. Then she saw him. A feeling of trepidation filled him as he heard her mutter "kill him" in the same hissing voice that Potter had used during the duel.

Peculiar noises filled his ears and something large slithered up from behind. He panicked as he heard the noises. Quickly, before whatever creature she had sent after him could do her bidding, he decided to transform into his animagus form. Sure that whatever was behind him had lost track, Ed slipped back into the corridors of the school. Now he was positive the Weasley girl was behind all the strange happenings. 'What on earth did she sent after me?' Ed worried over it as he continued to sprint away as fast as his legs could carry him.

Whatever she had sent after him was gaining speed. The creature moved increasingly closer to him. Ed hid behind the next corner, sensing the creature move past him. Silence filled the corridor for several minutes.

Whatever the creature was, it was gone. He no longer smelled it or heard it. Slowly crawling forward he tried to find a safe place in the hallway, only to stiffen when he heard a sharp thud. A moment later, the creature burst through the stone wall, having returned to find him.

Shrouded by the dust it had created, all that was visible to Ed were two yellow eyes belonging to a creature, and a moment later he was sucked into an unconscious abyss.

OoO

Sounds filled his ears, ones that he had heard before in a previous memory. Ed opened his eyes, to find himself witnessing yet another memory, or so he assumed.

He looked around a large office of some sort; one that was littered with stacks of papers and contained bookcases that were edged up against the wall.

He saw himself at a desk surrounded by paper, wearing a black coat and a white shirt along with black pants and shoes to match. Ed turned as he heard the door open, He saw a tall black haired man with onyx eyes attired in a blue military uniform had entered.

"So did you pop the question yet, Fullmetal?" The man chuckled almost teasingly. The only response his memory self seemed to have managed to give the man was the sound of his head hitting on the desk.

Then, "Do you see a ring on my finger yet, Mustang?" Edward drawled to the man, without looking up from the desk.

Mustang chuckled again, "No, but you could've hid it from me. Just like how you hid my paperwork last time... by the way Hawkeye shot me because of that."

Edward saw himself grinning at the man, "Well, you pissed me off, Mustang."

"So when will you propose? You know men can't wait for weddings." Mustang smiled back at him, though Ed just rolled his eyes.

"I can't do it now Mustang, I'm working on that case about those terrorists."

"Wait…who don't I want to endanger?"Edward thought to himself as he continued to watch his younger self talk.

Mustang was about to sit on the desk when he turned back, good mood now gone, "Do you really think that they're here in Central, Fullmetal?"

Edward sighed, no higher ups had wanted to believe him, and so they had just dismissed his idea, but Mustang continued, "I highly doubt they will do anything on the day of the Fuhrer Grumman's inauguration, Fullmetal."

"I'm certain of it Mustang! They… " He trailed off, uncertain about Mustang's disbelieving expression.

"…You do realize why the higher ups have been ignoring you?"

"I know that, but it's never stopped an assassination before." Edward heard himself remind the man.

Shadows crept through the scene before it was devoured whole.

OoO

Ed felt light as a feather. He couldn't see anything, the blackness had swallowed him. Opening his eyes, Ed saw hundreds of thousands of souls. His eyes widened, he heard voices! 'I'm in my Philosopher's stone?'

"Ed…" A girl's voice echoed from the distance, "I wished you'd just wake up... "

Edward looked around frantically and saw that no soul had spoken to him. He frowned. Where had the voice come from and why did sound like it wasn't coming from the Philosopher's stone?

"Miss Rockbell," A male's voice murmured somberly.

"He's been asleep for such a long time. I highly doubt that he will wake at all..." Another voice responded.

"It's been nearly seven months, right? Since -?" Ed heard yet another male's voice say.

"I can't believe that that the doctors say he won't wake up." Someone hissed quietly.

"It's because of his head injury." Another female's voice said.

"I heard the entire military feels guilty about not believing him, especially General Mustang. When he…"

"I know. They should have though. This tragedy could have been avoided..."

"I still can't believe the chief was promoted…"

"For a good reason."

"You think it's a good reason-" Who ever had been speaking was cut off as he suddenly heard beeping noises increase tempo. Then he heard a shout in dismay as he felt himself drifting further to the abyss.

"Wait a minute! Doctor! The patient's vitals -!" Another women's voice sounded alarmed. Then more voices joined in the distress.

"Ed!" He heard the girl's voice shriek.

"Chief!"

"Brother -!"

The alarmed voices he heard sounded foreign to him. Then he heard nothing once more.

Author notes: Off my writer's block! So this is an especially long chapter will be dedicated: Akumu Lee Crimson (Chi-Me no Renkinjustushi) for being my 50th reviewer!

TBC

Author notes: Off my writer's block! So this is an especially long chapter.This chapter will be dedicated: Akumu Lee Crimson (Chi-Me no Renkinjustushi) for being my 50th reviewer!

TBC