DISCLAIMER: Ed Elric, 48 (helmet and body), etc. © Hiromu Arakawa / Shukaku © Masashi Kishimoto / Marina, Araphon © author.

Key:

Normal text - speaking/narration

Italics - thoughts

bold italics: - jutsu

Ch 21: Rehumanize Yourself

The purple mass of chakra gradually increased in size until the center was about as big as a nectarine, emitting a high-pitched screech as it spun faster and faster. My two clones, meanwhile, made sure the jutsu didn't go off prematurely. M'kay Shukaku, that's plenty of chakra. Thank you.

Welcome. Finally deeming the jutsu complete, I held my left hand above my head, holding a giant, white shuriken. FUUTON: RASENSHURIKEN!

Suddenly, I felt a burning sensation along my left arm. It was as if my skin was blackening and curling away from the intense heat of the jutsu. My brow knitted in concern as my breath came out in ragged gasps. What's going on?

From his cage, an alarmed Shukaku hollered, Marina, get rid of it! Now!

My eyes widened. How?!

Throw it, disperse it, I don't care. Just do it before all your chakra pathways are severed! The tanuki bijuu was clearly perturbed, restlessly pacing back and forth in his cage with his hackles raised high. I managed to sling the Rasenshuriken at 48's body, the suit of armor exploding in two as it made contact.

"Araphon? You still around?"

"Yeah, I'm here. I got away just before the jutsu hit." The lion padded over to my side and gently nudged my injured hand with his muzzle. Reason told me that if I looked down, I would find a blackened stump in place of my hand. Luckily for me, Reason was wrong. Who was this 'Reason' anyways?, I wondered. When I braved a glance, all I found was a normal hand, albeit with a couple broken fingers.

"You've gone and done it now, brat!" Out of the blue, the top half of 48's body started to wave his arms around, freaking Ed out.

"Oh, shut up and rust!" the blond spat.

"It's shameful, but we lost," the helmet admitted.

Ed gingerly prodded the lower half of 48's body with the tip of his boot. "There, uh, wouldn't happen to be a third brother, would there?"

Both brothers answered, "No."

"Just destroy us." This was directed at the alchemist.

"Spare me from having to murder someone." Said alchemist sighed and slumped to the ground.

"You consider us human?"

Ed explained his reasoning. "If I didn't accept you two as human, it would mean I'm doing the same to my brother too. My little brother is human, and so are you two. That's why I don't want to kill you."

The helmet began to laugh derisively. "Us two have been stealing, destroying, and murdering ever since we came of age, and we're being treated as humans for the first time, after being turned into this? Interesting."

We all felt the floor shake beneath us and I steadied myself against Araphon's back, grimacing at the pain from my broken fingers. "That felt just like an earthquake. What was it?"

"Good question."

"Just finish us off. Get it over with," the top half of 48's body urged.

"I already told you; I'm not killing anybody! Period!"

"You're the one who said we're human, right? Well, in that case, help me. How'm I supposed to keep on living as scattered scraps of metal?" came the riposte.

"Well, um........" Ed walked over to 48's helmet and held it towards the body with an awkward smile.

The upper half of the body managed to right itself, scuttling away from the blond on its hands. "Don't connect us! Please! Do you really want us to remain here, guarding this abandoned building alone in this empty, lifeless shell of a body?"

"But...........but who says you have to keep doing that?!" Ed insisted, still holding 48's helmet.

"You think we can go outside? Do you actually believe that people would let us roam around freely?!"

"Wait a minute! My brother has the same kind of body you do. That's why I'm here searching for the philosopher's stone; so I can return him to normal. If I could just find it, I coul––" The blond broke off, frustrated.

"If we were returned to our normal bodies, we'd just be executed."

The body cackled. "Now do you understand? Even if we did become human, it would only be long enough to be killed. Or do you think they would let us, a couple of serial killers, go free?"

"No, there has t––"

"Listen to us. I'm sure it seems very noble, but you don't understand how cruel it really is teasing us, calling us human when we can only live in this twisted form, making us remember what we've lost. That is truly inhumane." The top half of 48's body positioned his right thumb over his blood seal, about to destroy it.

"No, stop you idiot! What are you trying to do?!" Ed dropped the helmet and sprinted over to 48's body, latching onto the body's right arm and trying to stop it from committing suicide.

The fallen helmet stated coolly, "Just shut up and watch."

"What are you talking about?! He's your little brother!" The state alchemist continued to pull at the body's arm.

"He was happy you called him human. Now he can no longer go back to being Number 48. This is the only thing he can do to keep his human dignity."

"No, that's not true! I can't let you do this!" Ed lost his grip on the arm and tumbled to the ground.

I ran over and held him tightly, my tears beginning to dampen the ground. "As much as I hate to say this Ed, it's his decision, and we should respect it." Said alchemist fought to get away from my grasp and towards the suicidal suit of armor, but the more he struggled, the tighter my embrace became. Unencumbered, 48's little brother broke his blood seal, and the right arm fell limp against the armor's side. As Ed stopped flailing around, my eyes closed and I buried my face into his back, tears flowing thick and fast.