Hello my furry friends. I just wanted to inform you that TAYLOR ALMOST DIED! I'm dead serious(no pun intended). She was driving down the road, hit a rough patch of gravel, and her car flipped a bunch of times. The car is totaled and no one knows how Taylor survived. She walked away from it with a fractured spine that will heal in about four weeks or so, a concussion, and various bumps and bruises. It's scary to think that I almost lost my best friend... Remember to drive safe kids.

On another note, I've started my new quarter of classes. I hate my history class already. My professor goes on these boring tangents about unrelated stuff, so I was just sitting up in there reading Beautiful Creatures. Seriously though, at one point he was talking about how the president is really just a king and...something about Jesus and prostitutes. I dunno, I tuned him out at that point. My other classes are cool though.

I've updated Taylor's Cake of Life, in case I haven't told you guys already. Oh, and I've posted a new one-shot, Harlem Shake. ...yes, I so went there. Read them if you want. Oh! And if you love good OC stories you should check out Oh, no! by Witherychode. This story...dear God, I want to marry it I'm so in love with it. It's definitely one of the funniest stories I've ever read and I was hooked after just the first chapter. You guys should go take a look.

Chapter 14

The Storm (Part 1)

LeFay couldn't remember a time where she didn't know Taylor. The two girls had grown up in the somewhat cozy town of Farmerville, Louisiana and had attended the same school starting from at least the first grade, maybe before then, and were always in the same class. The earliest memory LeFay could vaguely recall of her best friend was the first day of school. Of which grade, she hadn't the slightest idea. She had sat at a table, reserving the seat next to her for when Taylor arrived. On the other hand, Taylor could remember precisely her first memory of LeFay that stood out. They were in their third grade science class, the dark room filled with various class pets such as birds, guinea pigs, and a ferret named Mr. Stinky. A male classmate of theirs, a quick tempered boy, had punched LeFay square in the nose, making her bleed an impressive amount of blood. Neither remembered why he had done so, or what LeFay had done to incur his wrath, the details having faded with time.

Many things had happened since then, but nothing that remarkable until they entered junior high. Upon beginning the sixth grade, the two girls, along with their mutual friends Amy and Ragan, had begun band, their love of music bringing them all closer together. An inspiring band director that taught them for their eighth and ninth grade years, a man known as Mr. S, brought a rough-around-the-edges miniscule band like theirs into a second family for all of its members. They were strong together and proved to everyone that they could be something more. However, it all fell apart when Mr. S was fired due to charges, later proven to be false, that he grew marijuana at his home.

It broke their misfit family apart and shattered Taylor's world. She had been through so much already. Her birth father had made it clear early in her life that he wanted nothing to do with her. And the man she had come to call her real father had recently been putting her, her sister, and their mother through hell. The fights, the screaming, the lies, the impending finality of divorce, it was enough to break a person. But Taylor had persevered through it all, taking it all with a forced smile. It didn't break her until they took away her second family, the one aspect of her life she thought would always be constant, the one escape she never thought could be taken from her.

It had been a sunny day, the rays of the sun beaming through the gym windows. The four of them, Taylor, LeFay, Ragan, and Amy, all sat in the upper bleachers, captured in a mournful silence. Taylor's eyes were still bloodshot from the horrible news. All of them watched their fellow students lounge about the gym, some of them playing basketball, ignorant to their shared pain.

Then LeFay surprised Taylor by placing a hand on her shoulder, her grip firm and her words confident as she spoke fervently, "We're still here. We'll get through this." Taylor glanced up at her. LeFay's muddy brown eyes were focused on the students below them, her gaze warm and fierce at the same time. What she said didn't make all of their troubles go away, but it was enough.

A few grueling months later, Amy had attempted to petition the return of their beloved band director. It surprised them how many students had signed it and not even half the day had gone by. By sixth period the principal had gotten word of the petition and demanded the papers to be confiscated. Amy had wordlessly given them to her, despite LeFay's protests. Taylor excused herself to the bathroom and LeFay found her in there later, sobbing her heart out and cursing angrily about how she was so stupid for getting her hopes up. Cheering people up had never been LeFay's strong suit because she never knew what to say. She could only hug her best friend while devising things she could do to make her feel better.

Taylor was surprised when LeFay called her and told her to come to the Johnny's Pizza in town the next day. When she walked into the building that afternoon, she was met with a colorful gathering of current and previous band members of Farmerville High School, including Mr. S himself. Although she couldn't change their crappy school life itself, nor did she always have the right words to say, LeFay still had her own way of cheering Taylor up. Taylor had tackled her in a bear hug when she realized LeFay had done this all for her. It touched her and proved that there were some things she couldn't lose. Some things would always remain through the ups and downs.

They had an unbreakable bond, the two of them. Taylor never failed to motivate and keep the fire burning in LeFay, and LeFay never ceased to make Taylor smile.

"Hey Taylor?" LeFay asked in a hushed tone, her bedroom darkened by the late hour. It was only days before Taylor's trip to Ireland and the two friends had hung out at LeFay's house and had just settled in for sleep, LeFay in her bed and Taylor curled up on a pallet on the floor beside her.

"Yeah?" she responded in a sleepy tone.

"…do you think we'll still be friends forty years from now or so?"

Taylor didn't hesitate, snorting, "Yes, and I'll still be coming over to your house and we'll still eat microwave pizzas and have anime marathons, except you'll live with a bunch of cats and be the town hermit. Now shut up and go to sleep, you dingbat."

LeFay smiled, satisfied with her answer, "Okay." She snuggled under her blankets, closing her eyes with a sigh and waiting for sleep to claim her.

Yes, some things would never change.

(-Taylor-)

Fuzzy memories assaulted my mind, each one involving the person standing before me. Her face had become blurred in those memories, but now they were crystal clear. She called my name loudly, and yet it sounded so far away. Her eyes were filled with moisture and I wondered if she was upset. I was proven wrong when she nearly knocked me over in her hurry to hug me. I could tell by the way she said my name, she was overjoyed to see me. Everyone else in the room watched us with varying degrees of bewilderment, none of them sure what to do. I didn't know what to do either. What are you supposed to do when your best friend, who is supposed to be in another world altogether and you haven't seen in over seven months, magically appears and hugs you? My mind was too blown to fully comprehend this. Because surely, this couldn't be her. It was just impossible. It was a trick somehow.

She pulled back but kept her hands on my shoulders, achingly familiar brown eyes staring at me from behind the lens of her glasses. A huge smile encompassed her face, shining through the lingering tears, "I've been looking for you everywhere!"

"Looking for…" I repeated in a daze.

The fluffy girl nodded emphatically and would have said more on the subject had her ADD not kicked in. She gasped, "Oh my God! You lost all of your fluff! What happened?! You got so freaking tiny! I think your boobs even shrunk!"

I heard Hughes snort at her exclamation, and someone else asked quietly, "Fluff?" A bubble of laughter of my own escaped me by the sheer randomness of it all. Then again, LeFay had to be the most random person I knew and no one, not even Envy, could successfully imitate her. Without a doubt, this was her. She was here. She was really here!

"LeFay!" I cried out, launching myself at her and holding on with all my might as if she would disappear any second. The clothes she wore looked Amestrian, dark brown khaki pants paired with an equally dark button-up purple sweater(types of clothes she'd never worn before), but everything else about her hadn't changed a bit. She was still the fluffy, random girl I knew as my best friend. And she was here! I couldn't get over the fact that she was really here!

"You're…not crying are you?" LeFay asked in alarm. She pushed me back, seeing my happy tears. "Why are you crying?"

"You started it!" I accused.

She slapped lightly at her face, ridding her cheeks of the wet streaks, "All gone! See? So you can stop crying now."

I nodded, swiping at my eyes.

"Ahem," Hughes cleared his throat and came up beside us. He glanced between us and I felt my face heat up because everyone had seen me cry. Hughes didn't seem bothered by it though. He smiled at me, "Care to introduce us to your friend?"

There was no time for me to reply. LeFay did a double take of the bespectacled man and shouted in a delayed reaction, "HUGHES! You're alive!"

He jumped back in surprise and said uncertainly, "Yes, I have been for many years now… Do I know you, Miss?"

She shook her head, continuing to gaze at him in wonder. I snapped my fingers in front of her face and brought her attention back to me. She was so squirrelly sometimes. It just made me smile.

"This is my best friend, LeFay Strent," I introduced everyone to her. I glanced around to take in everyone's reaction.

Ed's eyes widened, "LeFay… You mean the LeFay that's…" Here, he paused to sneak a peek at our audience crowded at the door made up of Mustang's team and, curiously, Sheska. "…that's from where you're from?"

I frowned thoughtfully, "How'd you know?"

"You mentioned her a couple of times. You said if she ever met me she'd be likely to rape me." Then the realization of that statement processed in his head and his expression morphed into a horrified one. He scrambled behind Al to use him as a human shield should LeFay try to jump him in the middle of the office.

LeFay grinned, "You've been talking about me? Awww, I feel so loved."

Hughes shared a look with Mustang, both of them deducing that "where I'm from" meant my home world. Mustang stood swiftly and crossed the room within seconds to wordlessly shut the door on his teams' faces. He turned back to all of us, gauging me and LeFay.

"I want a full explanation from both of you. Now," Mustang ordered sternly, leaving no room for argument.

"Sir, yes sir!" LeFay grinned, giving him a mock salute.

I elbowed her and whispered harshly, "Don't do that!"

"Oh, come on. You can't say this isn't freaking awesome."

I sweat dropped, "Maybe so but I've had loads of time to get used to it."

"Well I haven't, so let me enjoy this."

Typical LeFay, so giddy in the presence of her favorite anime. Now that she had confirmed that I was alive and well, she was lost to her giddy fan girl. At least she wasn't glomping anyone…yet.

I rolled my eyes, "You can enjoy it while you start talking." I tugged on her wrist and sat her down beside me on one of the couches. The guys also settled down for story time. Hughes sat on the opposite couch beside Al, Ed perched on the arm beside his brother and watching LeFay warily. Mustang was the only one who remained standing, choosing to lean back against the front of his desk with crossed arms.

I'd expected to have to use more prodding to convince her to get down to business, but LeFay did it all on her own. "Okay, so I should probably start at the beginning," she sighed, appearing as if she'd had to tell this story numerous times. It made me wonder about her adventures before she arrived at Central Headquarters. And again, how was she here?!

"That would be best," Mustang droned, scarcely concealing his sarcasm.

"Right," she nodded. She launched into an explanation about when my mother had vanished for a week and had told no one of where she went when she returned. Here, I stopped LeFay to find out if my mom was okay. Although she had beaten herself up over my absence, Mom was doing just fine. It relieved me and removed a weight on my shoulders I never knew existed. When I had sent her back home using Wrath as a toll to the gate, I had instinctively felt that it had been a success. However, nothing could compare to being absolutely certain.

"She didn't tell me where she went until about three months ago. Ever since then I've been trying to figure out how to open the gate and get here."

"I thought alchemy in your world was impossible," came Ed's input. Him, along with everyone else, was enraptured by LeFay's story, myself included. We all wanted to know what happened.

"It should have been," LeFay agreed. "But then I had this theory. If you had the right array and someone who was connected to the gate, someone who had seen the truth, then it could be possible."

"But you had neither of those things," he argued.

"Actually, I had both," she smiled, pleased with herself. "Miss April had one of those nifty sketches of Taylor's tattoos."

"Tattoos?" Hughes and Mustang questioned, both of them looking at me.

"Uh, oops? Did I just spill some big secret?" LeFay asked, turning to me with big, fearful eyes.

I shrugged, "Not really. I just never mentioned it."

"Great! So you'll take off your shirt and show me them?"

"WHAT?! No, absolutely not!"

"Please?!"

"LeFay, we're in a room full of guys. Hell no."

"Don't mind us," Mustang commented, amused.

"Nobody is taking off any clothing!" Edward declared, giving Mustang the stank eye.

"Um, could you continue with the story?" Al asked LeFay sweetly.

"Oh, right," LeFay coughed and got back to business. "So this particular array was tattooed to you when you first got here, or so Miss A says. I assume it gave you some weird connection with the gate, right?"

"Yeah, how'd you know?" I asked.

She shrugged flippantly, "Lucky guess mostly, since the gate, Truth, whatever was the one that inked you. So I figured this was the circle to use. And since Miss A saw the truth when you sent her back through the gate…"

"S-she did? Oh God, did she have to sacrifice anything?!" I gasped in alarm.

"Chill," she patted my shoulder. "No, nothing like that. I'm assuming whatever you did paid the toll for her."

It…made sense, in a way. Using both Wrath and my Philosopher's Stone had been more than enough to send Mom back through. She must have ended up with a little extra in return.

"Even so, how did you activate the circle?" Al wondered.

"Miss A, her blood rather, was the key. A little prick of the finger and bada bing, bada boom! I had a one way trip to Amestris. She was gonna come with me but I activated the array too early, things got wonky, and I found myself in the gate. And more importantly, I found you in the gate."

"Me?!" I squeaked.

"Hold on," Ed demanded, waving his hands through the air. He stared critically at LeFay, "Are you saying that you're the one who rescued Taylor from the gate?"

"Yep! Speaking of…" She turned to me, "What the hell were you doing in the gate of all places?"

"I, uh…" I swallowed, trying to wrap my head around this new shock. All this time we had been trying to figure out this mystery, and LeFay had been the one to bring me back… Unbelievable.

"She sacrificed herself for us," Al told her, his voice laced with sorrow. "It was an equivalent exchange: her body for mine, her soul for Brother's. There should have been nothing left of her, but she somehow remained connected through us, preventing the gate from consuming her entirely."

"That explains that," Mustang mused, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. He must have had his suspicions about my disappearance, Al getting his body back, all of it. I didn't know if he had suspected this particular scenario though. His reaction didn't tell me much.

"So you really did," LeFay said, her gaze on me but her eyes unfocused and far away. "Izumi mentioned something like that…"

"You were at Teacher's?" Al asked, surprised.

"How are you still alive?!" Ed exclaimed.

"Eh, the gate kinda dumped me on that stupid island and she found me there and helped me out. She even fixed my glasses for me! But dude, did you know there's some freaky, overgrown, stalker spider there? It tried to eat me!"

Ed's face paled and mine probably did the same. "It's…still there?" I asked, suppressing a shudder.

"Yeah, but it pretty much left me alone after I tried to blow it up."

I face palmed. Somehow, I didn't think she was exaggerating.

"Spider?" Al asked, giving Ed a small, smug smile.

"Is the great Fullmetal Alchemist afraid of a whittle bug?" Hughes teased.

He flustered, "For one, they're arachnids! For another… Back on topic. How'd you manage to get Taylor out of the gate?"

LeFay nervously pushed the tips of her forefingers together, "I, um, kinda sorta…broke the gate?"

Dead silence.

LeFay fidgeted in her seat.

"You…broke…the gate?" Edward asked, dumbfounded. I didn't know whether he wanted to laugh or be angry.

"Is that possible?" Al asked, just as stupefied. Mustang and Hughes were looking equally as shocked.

"Apparently so," LeFay snorted softly. "I came in, found you floating with the gate babies, and pulled you out. It was like some switch was flipped or something because as soon as I did everything started going haywire. Truth said something about calling me a foolish mortal or whatever, and man did it look pissed and scared. It started screaming in pain, the gate to our world was trying to pull us back through, so I carried you to the other gate and we fell through but ended up separated. Oh! And I saw the truth thingy-majigie. But I'm afraid to clap my hands now because I nearly blew up half of that island."

"Something that extraordinary, the toll must have been exponential," Mustang observed. "What on Earth did you use in exchange? A Philosopher's Stone?"

"Those aren't exactly easy to come by," she replied, giving him a look that said he was stupid. "Nope, that's the strangest part. I didn't pay anything at all."

"That's…not possible," Al said, looking deeply disturbed. "There had to have been something…"

"Oh, they tried to take. Those spaghetti arms can be rather grabby," LeFay wrinkled her nose. "But all I had to do was struggle away from them. I don't think I would have been able to if it weren't for everything going all wonky. I don't know why, but taking Taylor out of there had some weird side effects."

Al shook his head, "Still, it's just not rational. Where is the equivalent exchange? What's going on here, Brother?" Here, he looked to Ed.

"She broke the gate," Edward murmured faintly. Concerned, Al waved a hand in front of his face. Ed showed no response, staring into space. The gate wasn't the only thing broken, apparently…

"Well, Roy?" Hughes glanced at Mustang, seeking his thoughts on the matter.

Mustang covered his face with his palm, "This is way above my pay grade."

"She broke the gate," Ed repeated.

"Yes, we've established that," I sighed. "What I wanna know is what this means."

"I don't think it's completely broken," LeFay defended. "More like it's in the process of breaking."

"What makes you say that?" Hughes asked, leaning forward in his seat with his elbows resting on his knees.

"The world hasn't exploded yet," she stated as if it were obvious.

"This gate…it's that powerful?" he asked in awe.

"I dunno. Ask the broken record over there."

All eyes went to Edward.

"She broke the gate."

Oh jeez…

"Brother," Al shook his arm. Nothing.

Mustang heaved a breath and marched over to him. Looming over him, he called, "Hey, Shorty, wake up."

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A SHRIMP SO SMALL HE COULD RIDE A SPECK OF DUST?!"

"Brother!" Al cheered, throwing his arms around Ed in relief, preventing him from strangling Mustang. I rolled my eyes at them while beside me LeFay squeaked, no doubt ecstatic to see an Edward rant in the flesh.

"Down girl," I pushed on her shoulder to calm her down.

"Arf."

I gave her a WTF look and she just barked at me again.

"Moving on… Edward, what do you think?"

Giving one last glare to Mustang, who had returned to his spot at his desk, Ed said, "It's possible. The gate, Truth…they're more powerful than you can imagine. I wouldn't underestimate them. If LeFay's right about them being in the process of breaking, things can only get worse from here. That place holds a vast amount of alchemic energy. With nothing to contain it, there's no telling how severe it'll be on either side."

"At the very least, the connection between the worlds might be broken," Al said.

"Meaning…there'd be no way to get home," LeFay surmised, her gaze lowering to the coffee table. "From what I saw, the gates were slowly starting to crack, and I'm guessing that's why they're becoming unstable. If we could just figure out a way to fix it before it all goes to hell, maybe we can stop all of this."

"If there is a way to fix it," Hughes stated. "This seems out of the hands of us mere humans."

"Humans are who caused this in the first place," Mustang said, glancing at LeFay. She shrunk in on herself guiltily. "They can reverse what has been done too."

"That's good in theory, as long as you have suggestions on how to do so."

Mustang tried to smirk but it came off as a grimace, "One comes to mind."

"Mind sharing with the rest of the class, Roy?"

His gaze flitted around the room, going from the boys, to me, then back to Ed and Al. I had a feeling that whatever he said I wasn't going to like it. "If taking Taylor out of the gate caused this mess, placing her back in would more than likely stabilize it."

Did he…did he really just suggest…

"No!" Ed snarled, rising to his feet. His glare was so livid, so deadly, that Mustang faltered. "If you think for one second that I'd let you sacrifice Taylor like that, you've got another thing coming."

"Why would you say something like that?" Al asked the Brigadier General, a hint of betrayal in his voice.

"I'm simply theorizing at this point. We need to look at all of the possibilities," Mustang told them in a smooth, calm voice.

"Find a different solution," Ed growled, standing firm.

The Flame Alchemist's eyes narrowed, the tension in the room escalating, "And what will you do if there is no other solution?"

"I'm not going to send her back to that place, that's for sure," Ed said darkly, his expression murderous. "And I'll stop anyone who tries." The way he looked at the older man was a silent threat paired with that statement.

Mustang pushed forward at a more cautious tone, "The fate of not only one but two worlds is at stake. We must consider every possibility."

"I get what you're saying, Mustang," I said softly. All eyes fell on me now, everyone of them shocked, none so more than Edward. I glanced at Ed for a moment, then focused my attention on Mustang, "The needs of the many outweigh the few, right? It's the smart thing to do after all. Save the world, both worlds, at the price of one measly life." My fists clenched into the fabric of my pants, the knuckles of my fingers turning stark white as I looked down at them. My voice nearly broke, "But…that dark place…you have no idea how truly horrible, terrifying that place is. I can't go back there… I won't… If it comes down to it, even if it means everything would be destroyed, I'd let it come… I'd rather die here than live inside that hell."

It was, without a doubt, the most selfish thing I had ever said. But humans were selfish creatures, and I was no exception. I wasn't as brave as I'd like to believe, as I wished I was. I wasn't some hero like Tegraia had made me out to be. I was just…

Scared.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, clenching my eyes shut in shame. The sense of wrongness constricted my insides in response, proving this entire situation was a mess and the worst had yet to come. It made me want to run away back to Resembool where things were relatively more stable.

"Hey," Edward gently took my trembling hands into his gloved ones. "Don't talk like that. Look at me Taylor." I obeyed. Kneeling in front of me, he stared at me in a way that made me feel like we were the only ones in the room, like everything else could just easily melt away. "I won't let it come to that. And I won't let you be sacrificed for some theory that might not even work. We'll find another way, I promise."

"That's right," Hughes agreed, standing up and placing himself between Ed and Mustang in an attempt to ease the animosity. "We don't know what's possible and what's not at this point. We can't be rash and rush into something of this magnitude. Loads of deliberation are in order and in the meantime we'll just have to cross our fingers and hope that we can figure something out before worst comes to worst."

Mustang was content with that proposition. Al nodded to himself, his body tensed anxiously from the argument and looming possibility of apocalypse. Beside me, LeFay didn't look at anyone. She sat with her hands clasped in her lap, watching her thumbs move, too deep in thought to say anything. Edward said nothing either, but he didn't have to. His grip tightened, assuring me that he was there, he would protect me, I was safe.

The door slammed open for the second time today, making all of us jump. Black Hayate (who I had nearly forgotten was there) hopped up from his position beside the desk and yipped at the sudden intrusion.

"Sir!" Breda called to Mustang, expression grim.

I wanted to groan. What had happened now?

(-George-)

George was a simple man and a very imaginative dreamer. And lazy. He couldn't deny being lazy. He'd rather sit home all day getting lost in a good novel than do the job that took up most of his days in Central. That job consisted of guarding the State Penitentiary, a place that housed many of Amestris's most dangerous criminals. There were serial killers, crazed alchemists, you name it. But beggars can't be choosers. It was a steady job, one he'd had since starting here a couple of weeks prior. He was good at it, and it put food on the table.

…he just wished it wasn't so…boring.

George's stance slumped and he moaned to his fellow guardsman, "How do you do this everyday, Lou? How have you not gone insane yet?"

Louie, who had been a guard at the prison going on two years, scratched at his goatee, "Who says I haven't?" George had only known Louie for two weeks but he had a feeling that didn't matter. Even if he worked here for the next twenty years, he doubted he'd ever know when Louie was joking and when he was serious. The man was just so stoic, it was hard to tell.

"You really worry me sometimes, Lou," George sighed, returning to his people watching. The day was calm, the temperature moderate, and a light breeze had picked up. It was a nice, peaceful morning.

BOOM!

"What the hell?!" George exclaimed, spinning around to peer past the bars of the gate. Louie did the same, both of them having heard and felt the tremors produced by some sort of explosion. Neither of them could see what caused it, only a large dust cloud that floated around the left side of the building. Shouts came from there, the words indistinct.

"What do we do?" George asked his partner, his hand resting on his firearm holstered on his hip and ready for anything.

"We stay put," Louie replied firmly, sharp eyes watching a few guards file out of the front entrance and dash around the corner with drawn guns. More shouts came, then gunfire. Then the screams began. George had never witnessed death or been anywhere around it, but he had no doubt that those were the screams of the dying. A shot of adrenaline born of fear and anticipation flooded his system, encouraging him to take action.

George turned to Louie, the screams continuing to hammer at his eardrums. They couldn't just stand there! "Lou!"

Louie closed his eyes in deliberation, body utterly immobile.

Another small explosion. More gunfire. More screams.

"Lou!"

"Alright," Louie surrendered. "I'll go check it out. But you stay here. I don't want anyone passing through these gates, got it?"

George paled, "You've got to be joking, Lou. I'm not about to let you go in by yourself!"

"You will. Someone has to stay here and do their job. And I'm not about to send you in there." Louie swiftly opened the gate, stepped inside, closed it back, and locked the doors again before George could stammer a response. Louie drew his handgun, and without another word he sauntered away.

"Lou! Don't- ugh, damn it!" George growled, banging his fists against the bars of the gate in frustration. What the hell was that man thinking?! They could have a full scale prison break on their hands for all they knew!

Another explosion. More gunfire. More screams.

George paced the length of the gate, sending glances past the gate. The pedestrians that had been passing through at the time watched him from the sidewalk, all of them afraid to approach the gate to steal a closer peek because of the agitated man.

Another explosion. More gunfire. More screams.

A wordless scream came from his own lips as he couldn't take it anymore. He quickly unlocked the gate and, barely pausing to lock it back, George hurried over to the corner of the building where all the action was taking place. He was a decently smart man, which was why he didn't rush into things. He lingered at the corner, his handgun a reassuring weight in his hand. Taking a few deep breaths, he slowly peeked around the edge.

Chaos. That was the first word that came to mind. The sight before him was a battle ground. Two figures were especially going at each other with all their might, fighting to the death with alchemy and causing the dust clouds. The guards were attempting to control them, many of them becoming caught in the crossfire. The ground was littered with blue-clad bodies, some of them trapped under rubble and others sprawled in the open as their eyes stared lifelessly at the sky. One of those sightless pair of eyes belonged to Louie.

George nearly threw up his breakfast. It seemed unbelievable. Hadn't he just spoken to Lou only a couple of minutes ago? And now he was dead, and more were continuing to die. He wanted to run away, but anger flared deep inside him, anger at Louie's killer, anger at Louie himself for going in alone and dying on him. George just wanted to know what the hell was going on.

He focused closer on the two alchemists, startled to find that he knew them both. One was the Silver Alchemist, Giolio Comanche. He had fought in the Ishval Civil War but was sent home early due to a grievous injury that caused the loss of his left leg. Despite lacking a leg, the older man appeared to be holding his own, spinning around on his wooden peg leg and dodging attacks so swiftly it was a wonder his black top hat didn't go flying off. The sword in his hand gleamed as silver as his long silver mustache, the blade reduced to a blur as Comanche wielded it against the Ishvalan State Alchemist serial killer, Scar. There was no mistaking the red-eyed tan man.

George had been expecting a prison break of some kind. What was the Silver Alchemist and Scar doing there? Comanche had no business here, and the most recent rumors he'd heard was that Scar was somewhere out East, not here in Central. Why were they here? The only logical explanation was that Scar was here to kill Comanche, and since Comanche resided in Central… Alright, that explained that, but why were they here at the State Penitentiary?

Scanning the area, George spotted a section in the perimeter wall missing. Chunks of concrete lay scattered around the recently made opening, as if one of the explosions had occurred there. Putting two and two together, George deduced that Comanche had been nearby when Scar had attacked him, the fight spilling over into the prison grounds.

They picked a hell of a place for a death match, he thought to himself, watching the two duke it out with each other. It appeared that even though Scar wore a scattering of bandages(from a previous fight somewhere?), he had no trouble against the Silver Alchemist, which pissed Comanche off. The older man was letting his anger get the best of him. It cost him his life in the end.

Scar slammed his open palm towards Comanche's face, missing him when he dodged at the last second and causing his alchemized attack to strike the side of the building. A thunderous series of booms rocked the ground as bolder sized sections of the outer wall, sections that reached up to the third floor, came tumbling down. The Ishvalan jumped back in time to escape the downpour. Comanche did not. The heavy debris crushed him, killing him instantly.

"Oh shit," George whispered. Now that Comanche was dead, you'd think the battle would be over. But the horrors just kept on coming.

Once the dust settled, a sinister laugh could be heard. The Ishvalan scowled, staring into the interior of the prison. Out of the gaping hole came a figure dressed in prison garb. A wicked smiled curved at the prisoner's lips, white teeth flashing behind unruly strands of long, black hair. A broken pair of wooden cuffs, presumably damaged from the wall's collapse, fell from his wrists, allowing him to brush the dust and pebbles from his shoulders. Black arrays were noticeable on his palms.

"Oh shit!" George repeated, this time with more feeling. He pushed away from the corner and ran as fast as his legs would carry him to the front doors and inside. Nothing else registered in his mind, so focused on his task was he, until he found the short row of phones lining the hallway. A shaky hand gripped the handle of one receiver while the images of dead bodies refused to leave his mind's eye.

George swallowed deeply, attempting to gain control of himself. He had to call HQ for backup. He had to warn them that Scar was here…and that the Crimson Alchemist had just been set loose.

Confession, my lil sis, Ana(aka, YourSecretStalker), came up with the names for the guardsmen. And Ragan helped inspire some of the fight at the end. Speaking of the fight, the Silver Alchemist, Comanche is not an OC. He's briefly shown in Brotherhood for those of you who can't recall.

I'm quite fond of the way this chapter began. Before we got into the happy reunion part, I wanted to show a bit of insight of Taylor's and LeFay's friendship and how close they are. It shows how important the actual reunion is. And LeFay...ah LeFay. I like to say how if I were ever in FMA I'd glomp all the characters, but truthfully I'd probably be like how LeFay was in this. Sure I'd be wanting to jump me some Edward, but I'd refrain. It's different when you're really there, ya know? That's why she didn't go into total ravenous fangirl mode...but I'm sure she'll make up for that later. XD ...and it is still wierd refering to myself as a character. *sigh*

Now I'd like to present to you an omake of when LeFay bursted into the room, just from Mustang's PoV. A small piece of it anyway. This was inspired by Sky65 when I asked her who's PoV I should do the chapter in. It sparked this small bit but I couldn't think of anything more to write. Plus, the reunion part was a critical moment for Taylor and LeFay so it made more sense to put it in one of their perspectives... But imagine how confused all the guys were too. Haha!

OMAKE:

(-Mustang-)

Roy Mustang was very confused. Not only had a previously suspected dead Taylor Riley woken him from his nap(a very nice and well deserved nap, thank you very much), but now some random girl had practically flown into the room to tackle Taylor in a nearly painful looking embrace. This stranger now blubbered half structured sentences through wailing sobs of...agony? Joy? It was hard to discern. The Elrics appeared just as perplexed, having frozen in place to watch the spectacle with wide eyes and slack jaws. Clearly, neither of them knew what was going on and Roy took some comfort in this. He didn't like being the odd one out.

The strange girl wailed again, grating on Roy's nerves. His hands itched for his gloves. Taylor simply stood there in shock. With the door to his office wide open, his team had come to see the show, along with Sheska of all people. The bespectacled woman shouted something about the alien trying to eat Taylor.

Roy wasn't getting paid nearly enough for this.

Ragan: That was beautiful.

LeFay: Really?! Aw, thanks!

Ragan: ...

LeFay: ...what?

Ragan: Oh nothing, I'm just wondering when you're going to LET ME OUT OF THIS BOX!

LeFay: Huh, I suppose the review count has reached over 684. Wow, that was fast.

Ragan: Yes, now about letting me out...

LeFay: Oh, darn. It seems I've misplaced the key. *whistles innocently*

Ragan: I'LL GET YOU LEFAY! AND YOUR LITTLE DOG TOO!

LeFay: *gasps* Thou darest to even joke about hurting my baby?! How could you hurt a cute face like Buttercup's?

Ragan: Easily.

LeFay: ...bye-bye! *runs away*

Ragan: AAAAAAAH!