Hey guys! I'm back! It seems like this took me forever to write. There were a lot of ways I considered going with this chapter and at first I wasn't sure if this was good or not but now I think I like how it turned out. Tell me if it's good or not.

FYI: Frog War is up and running! You know, that story I was going to write for my fans who reviewed this story that I was going to post last week but failed to? Yeah, it's up! Go check it out, ya know, after you read this new chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own FMA

Claimer: I do own Taylor

Taylor: *walks in* "Excuse me?"

LeFay: "Nothing!"

Taylor: "What did you just say?"

Ed: "She just said that she owns you."

LeFay: *frowning* "Thanks a lot, Edo."

Taylor: "I thought we already went over this." *pulls out large blunt object*

LeFay: *gulp*

Chapter 21

Explanation Time

(-Taylor-)

Al and I were in the middle of begging Ed to keep a kitten when the door busted open and my worst nightmare flew into the room.

"YOUNG ELRIC BROTHERS! I AM HERE!" Armstrong bellowed, scaring us half to death.

All three of us reacted differently.

Me: girlish scream

Al: "Major!"

Ed: "Duck and cover!"

Ed actually dove behind the couch. The kitten hissed and jumped out of my arms and joined him. I would have hid too but I couldn't move my legs yet, frozen in surprise as I was.

Armstrong paused in the middle of the room to pose. I swear I saw pink sparkles around him. If I wasn't still in shock I would have slapped them all down with a fly swatter.

"M-Major?" Al started hesitantly. "What are you doing here?"

Ed poked his head up over the couch, "And why do you have to be so loud, damn it!"

"It is better to announce one's presence with authority!" Armstrong flexed his muscles. It was irritating but at least he hadn't stripped…yet.

"As opposed to knocking like a normal person?" Ed fumed. He stood but stayed safely behind the couch. "Why are you here?"

"Lt. Colonel Hughes informed me of your daring rescue for Miss Taylor. I must say how valiant you were to search to the ends of the Earth to find her and face down her captors! Such bravery would rival even the Armstrongs'! Speaking of her, where is the young lady?"

Before I could sneak away Ed and Al pointed in my direction. Armstrong whipped around to me with bright blue eyes, "There you are! But where did you come from?"

My eyebrows rose, "Um, I've been standing here the whole time."

Armstrong seemed surprised, "My apologies. I must have looked over you because of how tiny you are."

I snapped, "It's not my fault I'm this small!" Jeez, Amestris had it in for short people. I could finally understand Ed's pain. If I stayed here much longer I'd start spouting short rants of my own.

Ed snickered but became subdued when I shot him a death glare. He cleared his throat and talked to Armstrong, "So, was there something else you came here for, Major? Or is that it."

Armstrong considered, "I am curious about how far you've come along in Doctor Marcoh's notes."

Ed gasped, "You know about that?"

His reaction puzzled me. I thought Armstrong knew about the notes already and Ed and Al knew that he knew. Armstrong was even there when they met Marcoh… Then I remembered. Events weren't following the timeline exactly and things had been changed. Ed and Al had never met Marcoh. I had had to tell them about the notes to keep them on track. Armstrong hadn't been there when I revealed the information and Ed and Al apparently had never told him either. So how did he know?

Armstrong rubbed his chin in thought, "Yes. Hughes told me who was told by Colonel Mustang."

"The Colonel?" Al questioned.

Ed's eye twitched, "I can't do anything without him knowing about it."

"His research pertained to the Philosopher's Stone, did it not?" Armstrong asked.

The brothers' mood changed. They were probably remembering what went into making the stone. Even I sobered at the horrible thought.

"Yes." Ed answered.

"And have you discovered anything?"

"The stone requires human lives to be created." I blurted.

I don't know who was more astonished, Armstrong or Ed and Al.

"Taylor!" Ed and Al yelled at me while Armstrong stared at me.

"What?" I asked innocently.

"Why did you tell him?" Ed asked, angry.

"He was going to find out anyway. Or was supposed to…I think." I searched my memory. Armstrong was supposed to find out in the show, right? I thought this was around the right time. I recalled him barging into the room in the same manner as now, crying over the truth of the stone which Ross and Brosh had revealed to him… Or was that in the Brotherhood series? Gah! Which series was I in again?

At that moment, Ross and Brosh poked their heads around the doorframe of the still open door. Their faces mirrored Armstrong's.

"Did you just say…?" Brosh trailed off, mouth hung open.

Crap, I thought. They hadn't known either. Did I just screw everything up?

"Edward." Armstrong said in a serious tone. "Is this true?"

Ed inhaled deeply, then exhaled in a sigh, "Yes. It's true." He spared me a glance that implied, I am so going to get you for this later, and pressed on. "But this doesn't change anything. We're not giving up. We'll find a way to get back to normal."

I glanced at the two soldiers at the doorway. They looked confused. Did they know about Ed's automail and Al's empty suit of armor? If not then would they ever? I couldn't remember exactly if they found out in the show or not. I should have rewatched the entire FMA series before coming here. But how could I have known that Amestris was a real place and that I would be sucked through the gate and get here?

"That is…" Armstrong began, head bowed. When he looked up there were tears streaming like a waterfall down his face, "THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING I HAVE EVER HEARD! EVEN AFTER RECEIVING DEVASTATING NEWS YOU'RE WILLING TO MOVE FORWARD! SUCH DETERMINATION IS INSPIRING!"

Then he flexed his muscles so much that his shirt ripped off of his body. I should have known that he couldn't stay clothed for a long period of time.

"BUT DO NOT FEAR! YOU DON'T HAVE TO CARRY THIS BURDEN ALONE! ALLOW OTHERS TO HELP YOU! LIKE ME FOR INSTANCE!I CAN HOLD UP THOSE BURDENS WITH THE SUPERIOR STRENGTH THAT HAS BEEN PASSED DOWN THROUGH THE ARMSTRONG GENERATIONS!"

He then tried to give Ed a bear hug.

"Stay away from me!" Ed yelled, running. He tried to hide behind Al but that only killed two birds with one stone. Armstrong encircled them both with his massive arms.

"Let go!" Ed cringed, fighting to break free.

Afterwards, when Armstrong had released them and stopped crying, things became serious once more.

"I'm going to have to ask you guys not to repeat what you've learned." Ed said to everyone.

Brosh and Ross nodded, still looking pale at the truth behind what they'd heard…Truth behind…Why did that sound so familiar? Oh! That was in the note Marcoh gave Ed! The truth behind truths. But since things were different Ed had never received the note. Which meant that he'd never read farther into this. I was going to have to give him hints.

"Ed." I began. All eyes fell on me. Because there were extra ears I was going to have to be careful about how I said this. "There's something I should tell you. There's more to this than meets the eye."

Ed stared at me suspiciously. Armstrong raised his bushy brows, "Does that mean you helped the Elrics' in their research?"

I grimaced, "Not exactly. There was something I…read…in the notes." I hoped I got my point across. Ed perked up, catching on. He knew I wasn't referring to the notes but to something from my side of the gate. "You have to find 'the truth behind truths'."

He frowned, "I thought we already found the truth."

"But not the truth behind it. This all goes back to Doctor Marcoh. Think on it."

Ed crossed his arms and deliberated. I could practically see his brain working as he processed this. It didn't take him long to see what I meant.

(-Taylor-)

A couple minutes later and the six of us were sitting around the coffee table. On the table was a map of the city. The conversation went about the same as it did in the show, though it was strange to see it firsthand instead of on a TV screen. They realized the corruption that had happened right under their noses and deduced that the fifth laboratory was the place where the stone's research was being held. Armstrong praised me greatly on how I had inferred that there was more to this. I smiled at him, glad that he hadn't grasped that I knew more than I should.

"We've got to check it out." Ed said resolutely.

"What!" Brosh said, surprised.

"Absolutely not!" Armstrong commanded.

"But-"

"Just leave this to us." Ross cut Ed off. "We'll investigate further into this. If we find anything we'll let you know."

He gazed into her somber eyes. Seeing that he wouldn't win this, Ed quickly surrendered, "Fine."

The three adults left soon after. Once they were gone I turned to stare at the brothers.

"What is it?" Al asked.

"When are you guys leaving?"

They gasped.

"How'd you know?" Ed asked.

I smiled, "I know you guys. You aren't going to sit still on this. You're going to sneak over to that lab and hunt for all its dirty secrets."

"You think we should just let the adults handle this?" Ed asked snidely.

I shrugged, "Do what you want. I'm not going to stop you."

Ed blinked, "Seriously? No 'Are you guys crazy!'? That's all you're going to say?"

"Yep."

"…Why?"

I snorted, "Do you want me to tell you that you're idiots? I know you are. You know you are. But you've already decided. And once you've decided there's no stopping you two. But are you sure you guys don't want backup?"

Al started, "You don't mean you do you?"

I scowled, "And what would be wrong with that?"

"Uh, I just meant that it could be dangerous."

I shook my head, letting it slide, "No, I didn't mean me. I don't know how much help I would be. I'd probably just get in the way. I meant someone here at headquarters."

"You heard Armstrong and the others." Ed reminded me. "They don't want us anywhere near that lab. And in this kind of situation we don't know who else can be trusted."

I sighed, "I guess you're right. But still…I'm going to be worrying over you guys while you're gone. I'm probably going to have an aneurysm."

"We'll be careful." Al promised.

"Oh, I know you will, Al." I stared pointedly at Ed.

"Don't give me that look." Ed grunted. "I'm the one who should be looking at you like that."

"Me? For what?"

"Don't give me that. You know exactly what. You have some explaining to do, missy."

"I do?"

"Yes." he nearly snarled. "Tell me how you knew about the fifth laboratory and everything else in general. And no vague answers this time."

"I told you. I'm from the other side-"

"But that's all you told us."

"Really?" I thought I had told them about the whole story thing from my side that was all about them. No, wait. That had been Al. I hadn't told Ed yet.

Ed thought I was being sarcastic, "Yes, really."

"Okay then." I crossed my legs into the couch, getting comfortable for my upcoming explanation. "On my side everyone knows about you guys."

"They do?" Ed asked, pushing his frustration aside and replacing it with fascination.

I nodded, "There's this story about you guys. It's called 'Fullmetal Alchemist', named after a certain young alchemist we all know. In the story you two are the main characters and it follows your lives as you seek to regain what you've lost."

Al laughed, shaking his head, "It figures that it would be named after Ed."

Ed gazed at me in wonder, "That's how you know everything about us and other stuff? From this book?"

"Yes." I didn't correct him and tell him that it was actually a manga. Nor did I go into detail about the anime series. It was less confusing that way.

Ed tightened his fist and became rigid, "Is that all we are? Fictional characters?"

"I…" I couldn't say anything to that. He had every right to be angry. I'd be mad too if I found out someone wrote a story about my life and people read it thinking I was something made up.

"We're real." Al said.

"Damn straight!" Ed shouted. "I can't believe people actually think our story is entertaining. I bet they read it and laugh their asses off!"

In a rage, Ed stomped out of the room into the bedroom, slamming the door behind him.

I stood to go after him but a hand on my shoulder stopped me.

"Al?" I questioned.

"Just give him some time." he told me. "It's a lot to take in."

"…Okay." I sighed. Alphonse knew Ed better than I did. They were brothers after all.

I heard a soft meow and looked down. A furry head poked out from under the couch.

Al chuckled and picked up the kitten, "So that's where you've been hiding. I'm sorry, but we can't keep you. But we can find you a home." He went to leave.

"Al." I stopped him. He paused to turn to me. "You aren't…"

"Mad?" he supplied the word for me. I nodded. "No."

"I thought you would be upset."

He petted the kitten as he considered. The kitten purred happily. "I'm not."

"Why not?" I asked, perplexed. Even for Al he was taking this too calmly.

"I've got this theory…" he trailed off, watching the kitten.

"And?"

"All of this just proves something."

"What does it prove?" I asked curiously.

"That our side of the gate and your side of the gate is more connected than we realized."

"Huh." I breathed, pondering. "I guess that makes sense. How else would someone from my side have written about this place? Maybe they've even been to Amestris before. Or they're from here." The possibilities were endless.

"Anything's possible." Al stated. "By the way, I like your hair." he commented for the first time on my new purple streaks. Then he waved and left.

I smiled.

Anything's possible. I was filled with a sense of optimism.

(-Taylor-)

An hour passed. Neither of the Elric brothers showed their faces. Al must have been still searching for a home for the cute kitty. Ed must still be sulking in the bedroom or had fallen asleep. I doubted the latter.

I tried pacing. I tried sitting still. But I was too antsy. I needed be doing something. Not sitting around twiddling my thumbs, which can be fun at times. Have you ever twirled your thumbs around and around? It's kind of addicting.

I ended up resorting to my fail-safe plan. I picked up my flute and began to play. I went through a few warm ups and then went to a real song. I played one of the last songs I had played on my side of the gate. What seemed like years ago but had really only been about a month ago my high school band had performed our annual Christmas concert. We've never had a lot of people in band but the people we did have kicked butt! We rocked our concert and the memory of that night would always be dear to me.

The notes of Greensleeves drifted through the air and I let myself get lost in the music.

(-Ed-)

Ed's thoughts were angry and snarled. He could not stop thinking about what Taylor had told him.

A story, Ed rumbled. Those people think all of this is a story. If they only knew the truth…

He buried his face deeper into the pillow on the bed where he lay. The more he thought about it the more frustrated he became. His emotions built up until he felt he was about to explode.

A noise filtered through his livid thoughts. The noise had been there for a while but he had only now just noticed it. Was that…music?

Curious, Ed sat up, gazing at the door as if he could see through it. The sounds drifted into the room, muffled by the solid wood of the door.

Irritation forgotten, Ed wandered over to the door. He laid his head against the wood, lining his ear up to the surface. He listened for a moment and distinguished that it was Taylor's flute. Taylor must have been in the other room playing it.

Ed stayed where he was and listened to the song. In the beginning, when Taylor had first gotten her flute, Ed had thought it to be pointless. But now, listening to the smooth notes he saw that he had been mistaken. The music was calming and dispelled Ed of his pent up resentment. It was an effective way of relaxing a person, this music. Maybe that's why Taylor loved the flute so much. It could get her through tough times calmly and rationally. It was better than storming off and sulking as he had done.

The song ended, much to Ed's disappointment. When the sound didn't start up again, he opened the door.

Taylor sat in a chair, holding her flute tenderly. She blushed and asked, "Was I bothering you?"

"No." Ed answered truthfully. He ambled over to the couch and laid down on the cushions. "Play another song."

Taylor said nothing more and complied.

(Imagine pretty music here)

"Hey Ed?" Taylor asked after the next song was over.

"Hm." Ed hummed a reply, eyes still closed from relaxing.

"I'm sorry."

He peeked out of one eye to stare at her, "What for?"

"I also thought you weren't real before I came here." she admitted sadly. "I didn't think you, Al, Amestris, any of this, could possibly be real."

Ed closed his eye and considered. He wasn't sure how to react to that so he thought about what Al would do instead.

Think about the situation from her point of view, his inner Al told him.

So he did. And he found himself thinking about it much more coolly than before.

"You couldn't have known." Ed was surprised to hear himself say. "Somehow, there's a book on the other side of the gate about this side. Who knows? Maybe there's a book about your side on this side. I can't hold it against you if you thought this was all fictional at one point."

A moment later and Taylor said softly, "I'm glad I was wrong."

Ed looked up at her. Really looked, this time with both eyes. The way she was gazing at him…he couldn't pin down the thoughts behind her expression but it made this weird sensation stir in his stomach. He looked away, blushing without knowing why.

"So when are you guys leaving?" Taylor repeated her question from earlier in the day.

"…We'll go tonight."

(-Taylor-)

The night felt like a solid object as I pushed my way through it. The darkness surrounded me, nearly eclipsing the light from the street lamps. I raced blindly down the alleys of Central as I searched for someone, anyone, to help me. But there was no one. No one was there to help me. I was alone.

I stumbled over my own two feet and toppled onto the hard concrete. I fought to get back up, ignoring my limbs' screams of protest. I had already run far but I wasn't safe yet. I managed to gain a somewhat standing position as I staggered farther into the darkness…and into a wall.

I floundered, patting the wall. There were no door, no windows, only hard brick.

It's a dead end, I thought. I twisted around, my back pressed to the wall as I faced my pursuer.

He stepped out of the shadows, the scarce light catching his face. His features did not move. No amount of emotions displayed as he came closer. His eyes were like a bottomless pit…so empty.

He stood over me and I sank to the ground. Keeping him in my sight the entire time, too frightened to look away. I was too scared to do anything else. My whole body shook in terror.

He reached behind his back and grabbed hold of the hilt there and slid out a deadly looking sword. Its blade was sharp and glinted in the small amount of slight. He raised it.

I shut my eyes, thinking, I'm going to die…again.

Jeez, I just love cliffhangers, don't I?

See you guys next time.

Taylor: "I don't think there'll be a next time. It's payback time for those times you killed me!"

LeFay: "I-uh-um- Hey look! A squirrel!"

Taylor: *turns to look* "Where?"

LeFay: *sneaks away*

Taylor: "Hey, there's no..." *realizes her prey has escaped* "Dang it. I fall for that every time."