Chapter 6

Alphonse

Soft light indicating imminent sunrise spilled into the room through the window. Al had finished his book a while ago, and now sat in his crate watching the sky slowly turn from dark purple into a warm orange-yellow color. Hearing the bedroom door click, he turned his head to see Ed appear with a change of clothes bundled under his arm. He closed the door behind him quietly.

"Morning, Brother." Ed waved his arm halfheartedly in reply, yawning widely. Al laughed. "Didn't sleep well?"

"Not really, no." Ed crossed the room and leaned on the arm of the couch, facing Al. "Had a lot on my mind. It was hard to stop thinking and fall asleep."

"I could hear your voices for a while last night. What did you talk about?"

His brother looked back at the door, as if making sure it was closed and his voice wouldn't carry. "I told her a bit more about us. You know, our world." He said. "I told her we'd try and help research spirit portals, see if we can't help get her home."

"That's great, Brother." Al responded cheerfully, but when he caught the look on Ed's face, he asked, "What is it? What's wrong?"

Ed sighed heavily as he met Al's gaze. "I don't know how, but somehow she knows what you are. She knows you're a soul bonded to armor."

Al stared at him. "Of course she knows, Brother." Why was Ed surprised by this? Seeing his brother's confused look, he explained. "I have a gaping hole in my side, Brother. Anyone with eyes can see the armor is empty. Besides, the way she talks about spirit stuff, it wouldn't surprise me if she could somehow sense it."

Ed's eyes lost focus as he pondered this, his chin in his hand. "I didn't think about it that way. Makes sense I guess." He seemed somewhat relieved because some of the worry left his face. "Alright. I suppose I was worried about it for nothing. Thanks Al." Ed punched his armor lightly in a playful manner. Then he turned and headed towards the bathroom. Al watched him go. He hoped his brother hadn't kept himself up all night worrying over something that stupid.

Not having known her very long, Al hadn't formed a complete opinion on Ayana yet. But he could tell she was a good person. She was honest and kind, and fiercely protective of innocent lives, even willing to put her own life on the line to help others. That tenacity reminding him of Ed. She was also very perceptive. When he'd first met her, her reaction to him had left him wondering if she could see his true nature. Now Ed had confirmed it. She hadn't seemed at all bothered by it, though.

The bedroom door opened again and Ayana stepped out. She'd brushed her hair and chose to leave it long, and the wavy locks blanketed her shoulders. She wore a simple outfit which consisted of a light blue tank top and jeans. Seeing the bathroom door shut, she turned to Al and sat cross-legged in front of him. "Morning, Alphonse."

"Good morning, how did you sleep?"

"Pretty decent, thanks." She smiled warmly at him. She suddenly got a serious look on her face. "Look, I think I said something that upset your brother last night. I want you to know…"

"Oh don't worry." Al interrupted her. "We talked about it, I don't think he's upset." A look of relief crossed her face. He switched to a more serious tone. "I was wondering, though. How did you know?" The bathroom door had opened behind her and Ed appeared in the doorway, but he froze when he heard Al's question.

It didn't appear Ayana heard Ed's entrance. She met Al's eyes. "I can sense it. I have a lot of experience with the spirit world. Yours feels… different…." Ed's eyes widened, and Al's orbs grew larger. Seeing his reaction, Ayana quickly shook her head, waving her hands, and added, "Not in a bad way! It's just, it's different than other spirits I've met. I can sense the humanity in your soul." Al saw Ed relax, a soft look on his face. Ayana smiled at Al as her hazel eyes pierced his soulfire ones. "I know there's got to be a story behind it, and I'll admit that I'm curious to hear it. But I'd like to get to know you better first. After all, we're still practically strangers." Al nodded. He didn't know what to say. "So, Ed, would you like to join us or keep gawking at us?"

Ed jumped at being addressed unexpectedly. Ayana looked at him over her shoulder with a large grin on her face. Al laughed. She was perceptive, all right.

They sat for a while talking about a variety of things, just trying to get to know each other better. As the conversation continued, they discovered Ayana was an only child, her father a renowned fire-bender and her mother an earth-bender.

"So, they can each only bend one element?" Ed asked, to which Ayana nodded. "Why? You can bend all four. Is it more common for people to only master one or two?"

Ayana put her hands behind her head and rocked back slightly, closing her eyes. "Benders inherit their ability through their bloodline. It's only possible for a person to bend one element. Unless that person happens to be me. I'm the only one in the world that can bend all four." She opened her eyes again to gauge their reactions and let her hands fall back down into her lap. "I'm what we call the Avatar. That's why I can bend all four elements. My soul is fused with a spirit of light, and she gives me the ability to master them all."

"Wow!" Al exclaimed. He was completely enamored with all this. It was exciting to learn how different her world was from theirs. He had a giddy feeling, much like a kid in a candy store, and he wasn't really sure why.

"The Avatar?" Ed repeated. "Spirit of light?"

"Raava." She said the name quietly, with an air of reverence. "Long ago, Raava fused herself with a man named Wan, who became the first Avatar. Ever since then, when we die, the Avatar spirit is reincarnated into another person. And so, the cycle continues."

"Why would a spirit merge itself with a human?" Ed wondered aloud. It was a good question, Al thought. He didn't really believe in gods and higher powers, at least not before he'd met Ayana. Now he wasn't so sure. But regardless, he couldn't see why a powerful spirit would lower itself to merge with a human.

"It's complicated. Ten thousand years ago, Wan came across Raava and her opposite, the dark spirit Vaatu, wrestling each other. Vaatu tricked Wan into helping him fight off Raava's hold on him, which allowed him to escape and begin wreaking havoc on the world. After realizing his mistake, Wan set out with Raava to stop Vaatu, and in the process of doing so, they combined their strength to imprison him. Their merge was irreversible."

"You speak as if you were there." Al commented

"I was. The Avatar is reincarnated, remember? I have access to all my past lives within myself, via Raava."

Al made a gasping sound as he stared at her. Ed looked up at that statement, too. "Really? Ten thousand years, that's a lot of people…"

"I don't share my consciousness with them." Ayana shook her head. "I can communicate with them through meditation and can draw on their power if necessary."

"This is so cool." Edward said in awe. Al wholeheartedly agreed.

A knock at their door startled them, and Major Armstrong appeared in the door. "Are you all packed up and ready? We should leave for the station soon."

"We'll be right out, Major." Ed replied. Armstrong nodded and backed out of the doorframe, allowing the door to swing shut.

Ayana pushed her palms to the floor, air-bending herself into a standing position. "All right, let's go!" She headed into the bedroom to grab her suitcase.

"Well, that's going to take some getting used to." Ed chuckled. Not that he hadn't believed it when Ed had told him of her abilities but seeing it in action solidified the reality in Al's mind somehow. He had had a limited view of the fight with Scar, so hadn't seen much. Mostly just flying fireballs. Seeing her actually bend air, so effortlessly, like it was an extension of her body… it was awesome.

Ayana

The walk to the station didn't take long. Edward led her onto the train while Armstrong carried Al to a storage car. Poor Al.

They found some empty seats and were shortly joined by Armstrong. One of the commanders from yesterday's showdown with Scar showed up at the train window and discussed some things with Ed. Ayana wasn't paying attention. Their conversation this morning had reminded her about the upcoming Harmonic Convergence and Vaatu. She wondered what would happen if she wasn't there waiting for him at the Tree of Time when the Convergence started. Would he be drawn to her in this world, and force her and Raava to do battle here? Or would he simply begin terrorizing her world, bringing darkness and chaos to her homeland? Neither scenario was good. She had to find a way back before that happened. She couldn't remember exactly how many days were left before the Convergence, but she knew she had a bit of time. I know it was around a year… Maybe eleven months? Or thirteen? Gah. If only she could remember. She should have written it down or memorized the date. Tenzin would be scolding her on her carelessness if he were here right now.

The trains whistle blew, bringing her out of her thoughts. They had a long ride ahead of them. It didn't take long for Edward to fall asleep, snoring softly beside her. She'd never traveled on a train before. Never had to, not when there were more convenient things like sky bison. Even her glider was preferable to sitting for hours on a train. I'm going to have to find some materials to make one. It shouldn't be too hard. A long rod, some hinges and springs, and cloth should do. Maybe if she gathered the materials, Ed could transmute it for her. She'd have to ask when he woke up. Maybe drawing a picture for him would help her explain what she wanted and would make the transmutation easier.

She reached into her bag and pulled out a flyer that some gentlemen were handing out at the station. She flipped it over to the blank side and pulled a small pencil out of her pocket. She couldn't remember where she got it. Maybe it was left in the pocket by Kara's daughter, or maybe she'd picked it up in the hotel. Ayana was a terrible artist; she could barely do stick figures. But she tried anyway, and produced a very crude picture of a glider design.

Her handiwork caught Armstrong's attention, who leaned forward in his seat for a better look. He offered to give the drawing a try if she gave him a detailed description. His sketch turned out much better than hers.

"Wow, Major, you're a really talented artist!" Ayana praised him as she admired the drawing.

"The art of drawing has been passed down the Armstrong line for generations!" He replied proudly.

She laughed as she folded the paper carefully and shoved it in her pocket. She'd find the materials to build it later. Leaning back, she tried to get as comfortable as possible without invading Ed's personal space next to her. She considered trying to meditate, but she doubted she'd be able to in this loud environment. Plus, it would leave her body in a vulnerable state, which didn't seem like a good idea in such a public setting. She settled for just sitting with her eyes closed instead. Eventually she dozed off.

Edward

When Ed woke, nothing had changed from when he'd fallen asleep. He was still on the train; the monotonous clacking of the wheels on the tracks was muffled under the buzz of other passengers' conversations. The seat across from him was empty. Must be the Major had gotten up to stretch his legs.

Ed sat up straight, stretching his arms above his head. Ayana was asleep next to him with her arms crossed and head leaned back against the headrest, a peaceful look on her face. Her hair had a beautiful shine to it as it fell neatly around her shoulders, and her skin looked soft. He wondered if it felt as smooth as it looked.

He jolted, shaking himself. Why was he staring at her like that? He looked away quickly, feeling embarrassed even though there was no one there to witness. Shaking his head at himself, he surveyed the countryside rolling past the window and tried not to think about how many times over the past two days he'd caught himself staring at her.

The Major came back after a short while and announced the train would be making a stop in another hour or two at a small town before continuing on to Resembool.