This one's pretty short, but the story really moves from here. I'm so excited!

It took me a little longer than I expected to find something to eat, so my meal was closer to being dinner than lunch. The sun was already sinking towards the horizon when I returned to the hotel, and Winry still wasn't in our room. My heart sank. Please be okay, Winry… It's not nice to see people sad…

A muffled clang drew my attention to the brother's room, and I put my ear hopefully to the door. The familiar clanking of armor and a girl's voice lifted my spirits again, and I knocked vigorously until the door opened. Ed's blonde hair and sharp eyes came into view.

"Oh, there you are. Where did you disappear to?" he asked. I raised a brow.

"Shouldn't I be the one asking that?"

"Oh, yeah. Sorry about that."

I was surprised by the placidness with which he said it and stepped back so I could enter the room. Winry was rubbing oil on Al with a rag, to my relief.

"Selena? Where were you?" she queried.

"Oh, sorry." I fidgeted sheepishly. "I was going to hang around the hotel and wait for you to come back, but then I ran into Lin's friends, and when the commotion died down, it was late…"

"It's okay," she smiled back halfheartedly. "I'm sorry I got so depressed all of a sudden."

"Don't apologize, it's not your fault," I assured her. Casting a curious glance at Edward, who had sat down on the bed, I added, "Looks like all you guys knew that Brigadier General person."

Al made a motion that looked like an attempt at a nod, since he wasn't wearing the helmet.

"He was a lieutenant colonel before he was…" he trailed off.

"What was he like?"

"Really animated, and he cared a lot about his family. He talked about them a lot."

"Oh." I said it quietly, musing over this "family man." It was so strange a concept it didn't even seem real.

"We visited his family," Ed murmured. "His wife said we should keep working to get our bodies back, even though that's what got him killed. I'm not really sure what to do anymore…"

Silence seeped up through the carpet and permeated the air around us, weighing heavily in my throat so that even breathing took more effort than it should have. I frowned.

"So you're just giving up?"

"I don't know." That ticked me off even more than if he had straight out replied "yes." Marching over to him, I glared darkly at Ed.

"Shorty."

"What?" he asked irritably.

"I'm going to punch you."

"What…? Hey, wait a—!"

He caught my fist with his hand, but I used the other one to smack him upside the head.

"Look at yourself! What happened to the feisty bastard that never admitted defeat? My god, you disgust me!"

"What the hell?" he yelled, blocking a flurry of punches. "What are you getting all worked up for?"

"I know what it's like, you jerk!" I shouted back. "I lost everything, in case you forgot! I know how it feels when somebody dies helping you! It hurts! It's not fair!" Angry tears were starting to fall from my eyes, but I kept throwing punches, even though he was blocking them all. "But if you give up, it's like they died for nothing! Don't you dare disappoint him, you bastard! If you do—!"

I stopped to rub my tears violently away with a fist and continued a little more calmly, tired out by my outburst.

"If you give up… I'll hold it against you for the rest of your miserable life."

Ed blinked at me, hands raised in a defensive position, and I turned around and plopped down on the floor like a sulking child. I could feel Winry and Al's eyes on my back as I glared shotguns at the wall.

Several minutes later, knock on the door broke through the tension. Sighing tiredly, Ed got up to answer it, stepping carefully around me on his way there. I thought about tripping him, but I was too irritated.

"Hello, can I help you?" Ed's voice wafted in as the door opened.

THWACK.

Everyone flinched violently as a clang and a loud thump sounded in the hallway. Hurrying to our feet, Al, Winry, and I scrambled to the door to find Ed sprawled on the floor a fair distance down the hall. Marching towards him was an unmistakable, hulking man.

"What the hell was that for, Major?" Ed was starting to push himself upright when none other than Major Armstrong yanked him into the air by his collar with a concerned cry of "Oh, dear!"

Taking hold of Ed's badly dented arm, he continued, "Your automail is broken! This is bad! I will accompany you to Resembool at once!"

"Eh…? But I have Winry here, so I don't need to go all the way there…"

"You must get packed right away, and I'll take care of the rest!"

Al stepped out of the doorway into the hall.

"Big brother, are you going to Resembool?"

"Um, Al, listen…"

"Why, it's Alphonse Elric!" the major interrupted brightly. "You stand out too much, so you should stay here."

Everyone gawked at him in confusion, and then his gaze shifted to me. Recognition was exchanged between both our expressions. I blinked, stuttering impulsively.

"I—uh, um…" !

"Erm…" He paused, and then reached out to pat me on the head, resuming his bright attitude. "Hello! It's a pleasure to meet you! My name is Major Alex Louis Armstrong. I need to make train reservations immediately, so we'll have to be properly introduced next time. Goodbye, you three! Let's go, Edward Elric."

He dragged a sputtering munchkin away without further ado, leaving the rest of us speechless. After they had vanished, I couldn't hold back a snicker. Al glanced down at me.

"What is it?"

"He really is," I giggled, "way too nice."

He eyed me questioningly, but then another voice demanded our attention.

"Are they gone?"

Winry shrieked in shock, and both Al and I jumped nearly a foot. Lin cocked his head at our reactions.

"Lin! Where did you come from?" Al exclaimed, and the foreigner jerked a thumb behind him.

"Through the window. I'm a wanted criminal—an illegal alien, plus I broke out of prison," he added proudly. I dropped my face to my palm with a groan.

"Idiot…"

"So what have you been up to since we last saw you?" Al asked.

"I heard about your adventures from Barry the Chopper," Lin replied. "You've gotten yourselves into quite a mess!"

"Barry knows them that well?" I mused, and Al looked at me in surprise.

"What? You met him? When?"

"Long story, I'll tell you later…"

"Actually, I have quite a bit of news for you," Lin continued with a sly grin, seating himself on the windowsill. "I think you'll want to hear it…"

And now I write like my very life depends on it! I didn't expect to have Selena yell at Ed at this point, but I'm glad she did. Depression is NOT good for you! She's still such a child, though... -sigh-

Oh yeah, school's over for me! Yes! More time to write, and I am stoked! Prepare yourself, keyboard, because I am going to beat the crap out of you! MOAR CHAPTERS!

(Yes, I know I'm a little too hyped up to be sitting staring at a screen... But I love this story...)