Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist, Avatar the Last Airbender, or Legend of Korra

Ayana

Ayana's brain was on overdrive as she thought about what had happened in Colonel Mustang's office. She didn't much like the idea of a military officer following her around, but it was obvious the Colonel didn't trust her. She wondered if he had answered her question about his knowledge of the spirit world truthfully. Regardless, being on the military's bad side was not something she wanted, so if it meant playing along and allowing a guard to babysit her for a while, so be it.

It turned out Mustang had decided to assign her guard to watch the boy and his brother, too. Edward and Alphonse, she reminded herself of their names. A rather large muscular man, identified as Major Armstrong, was introduced as their security detail. Why couldn't she have her own guard? As it was now, Mustang had effectively chained her to the boys. Maybe he'd done it for a reason. What that reason could possibly be, she didn't know.

Despite being introduced as the younger brother, Alphonse towered over Edward. Well, he would have, if he could stand. As it was, half of his armor was destroyed, which left him in pieces inside a crate for the time being. When Ayana had met him, hope had blossomed in her heart. Here was a spirit inhabiting a suit of armor, that much was obvious. The yawning hole in the side of the armor was proof enough that there was no body inside. If the boy's spirit could exist alone without its body, perhaps other spirits also roamed this world, too. Since Mustang wouldn't help, she'd just have to keep her eyes open and find a spirit by herself. If she found one, they could lead her to this world's spirit portal.

After the meeting with the Colonel, Major Armstrong had escorted her and Ed to a nearby hotel, where Al was waiting and introductions were made. It was a decent sized suite, with a cozy living room separate from the bedroom. Two couches faced each other with a table in between, similar to the setup Colonel Mustang had in his office. There were two small beds in the second room, and upon entering, Ayana tossed her bag on the one that had obviously not been used. She didn't mind sharing a room; back home it was not abnormal to sleep in common areas with others, especially during her visits to the air temples, where the acolytes shared sleeping quarters. Ed seemed a little uncomfortable with the arrangement, but Armstrong had insisted it would be easier for him to guard one room as opposed to two, and Ed didn't have a solid argument for that.

Ayana was standing at the end of the bed, lost in her thoughts. She could hear Ed and Al talking quietly in the adjacent room, their voices a soft murmur. Drawn out of her brooding, she wandered back into the living room and flopped down on one of the couches, pinching the bridge of her nose in her fingers with her head leaned back. She dropped her hand to her side with a sigh and stared at the ceiling for a few minutes.

Ed and Al had fallen silent at her entrance. She wanted to ask about Al's body but got the feeling it was a touchy subject. She didn't want to piss off the people she was going to be spending an indeterminate amount of time with. She'd ask about that later.

She felt the need to apologize; deciding to break the silence, she spoke, eyes still fixed toward the ceiling. "I'm sorry that you're stuck with me. If it's any consolation, I'm not any more thrilled about it than you are."

She heard movement and watched with her peripherals as Ed moved to the couch across from her and slowly sank into the cushions.

"Don't apologize." Al said in a low voice from his box in the corner. "There's nothing to be sorry for. We should be thanking you, you saved Brother's life."

Ed flinched slightly at his brother's words but continued to watch her, his gaze showing nothing but curiosity.

She waved a hand dismissively. "I'm just glad I got there in time to help."

Silence enveloped the room again. Ed shifted uncomfortably.

Al finally broke the stillness again. "So, where are you from?"

It was an innocent question, but even so, Ayana hadn't prepared herself for it. She thought for a minute. Should she tell the truth? They might not believe her even if she did. She didn't want to lie, and she didn't know enough about this country to even come up with a plausible one, anyway. The only city names she knew was this one and the slum she'd met Kara in. She couldn't use either of those, since it was painfully obvious that she wasn't from around here. She didn't even know the names of any other countries in this world.

Lifting her head, she met Al's gaze and saw the soft glow of his eyes portraying kindness and patience. How she could sense this just from his eyes, she didn't know. Maybe it stemmed from her experience with spirits.

"I don't think you'd believe me if I told you." She finally answered, still holding his gaze.

Al didn't say anything, but turned his head to meet his brother's eyes. They shared a look, then Ed responded.

"Try us. We've probably heard crazier things." He put his hand on his knee and leaned forward a little in anticipation. Al nodded in agreement.

"If you say so." Ayana shrugged. "I'm from another world." They stared, clearly not expecting that. She forestalled any questions by continuing, "The last thing I remember, I was fighting an angry water spirit. It grabbed me and dragged me underwater. Next thing I knew, I was waking up on the outskirts of this city."

She decided she was already this far, might as well go all in. She leaned forward, unable to hide her agitation. "Please. I have to find a way back. My world needs me. I don't know how I got here, but I think my best bet for getting home is finding a spirit portal. Do you know where the closest one is?"

The brothers shared another look before Ed responded. He met her desperate eyes with his deep, golden ones. "We… uh… we don't know what that means. Portals don't exist here." He must have seen her disappointment because he quickly added. "Not that we know of, anyway. They might exist out there somewhere, but nobody's found one yet."

Ayana leaned back into the couch again and sighed. Well… damn. If she couldn't pass through a portal, she'd have to find another way. She could meditate her way into the spirit world, but that would leave her body behind. That would only work for communing with the spirits or the previous Avatars. Still… it might be worth a shot. They might have some helpful ideas on methods for getting her body into the spirit world without a portal. Or, like Ed said, maybe a portal did exist somewhere, and it just hadn't been found yet.

There was a knock on the door, and a tall man with glasses strolled into the room. He held four slips of paper in his hand, which he thrust in Ed's direction.

"Just got back from the station, here's your tickets to Resembool. Train leaves at 9am, don't be late!" He handed the tickets to Ed. "Sorry I can't stick around. I've got to get home for dinner, Gracia's making quiche tonight!" Smiling broadly, he was already turning towards the door. "I'll see you off at the station tomorrow. Get some sleep!" He waved as he left and closed the door behind him.

Ayana decided to take his advice. Her mind was spinning with the newly gleaned information as she tried to formulate ideas on her next steps, which was making her brain hurt. But she knew that, for the time being, she was going to go with Ed and Al to visit their mechanic, since Major Armstrong wouldn't have it any other way.

Actually, now that she considered it, tagging along might prove to be the best path forward for her. Traveling would be a good way to look for a portal, and maybe if she was lucky, she'd run into some spirits who were hanging out in this realm. Either of those possibilities was worth the trip.

Ayana stood and stretched her arms above her head. "I suppose I'll take his advice. See you in the morning."

When neither brother responded, she turned and headed for the bedroom.

Edward

As Ayana closed the door to the bedroom softly, Ed and Al both stared after her. When they'd first gotten back, Edward had taken the opportunity to relay to Al what had happened in Mustang's office. Needless to say, Al was as floored as Ed had been. Now that they were alone again, Al picked up the conversation right where they'd left off.

"So, she asked the Colonel about a spirit realm?"

Ed nodded.

"And she mentioned it again, just now. I wonder why it's so important to her? I've never heard of a world of spirits, have you?"

"No." Ed shook his head. "I think it's important to her because she thinks it's her way home." He rested his elbow on his knee and held his chin in his hand, thinking about what she'd said. "If that part is even true. Although, I don't know why she'd lie about that."

"I don't believe it was a lie." Al agreed. "She seems to be a pretty honest and open person." They sat in silence for a few minutes before Al spoke again. "You should get some sleep too, Brother. It's late, and we'll have to get up early to catch the train.

"Yeah yeah." Ed waved dismissively. He stood anyway, and approached Al and put a comforting hand on his little brother's shoulder. "She did help us today. Maybe we can return the favor. We can keep our eyes and ears open. Who knows, maybe we'll find some books or something about portals or spirits." Al nodded. Ed squeezed gently, knowing his brother couldn't feel it but that he'd appreciate the sentiment all the same. "Good night, Al."

"'Night, Brother."

Al reached over to the table with his undamaged arm to grab a book while Ed wandered over to the bedroom door. Opening it quietly, he peered in to see Ayana already under the covers in her bed. She was lying on her side, facing away from him. The moonlight streaming through the single window was bright tonight, since the rainclouds had finally cleared earlier.

Closing the door softly, Ed walked as lightly as he could to his bed. But even so, the boards creaked beneath his feet. Her back was still to him, but regardless Ed changed clothes as quickly as he could, hoping she didn't turn over as he did so. Afterwards, he crawled into bed and pulled the soft covers up to his chin.

Rolling onto his side, he found himself gazing at her still form. The moonlight spilled over the bed, illuminating her in an eerie, silver glow. Her hair cascaded down her back and pooled onto the pillow and mattress. It was a mesmerizing picture.

He was about to close his eyes when he saw her silently lift her arm and swipe her hand through the air. A small gust of wind swished the curtains mostly closed, blocking a majority of the moonlight. Ed gawked in amazement. Now knowing that she was still awake, he was tempted to ask one of the countless questions burning in his mind. He figured he wouldn't be able to sleep much, anyway. Not after the day he'd had.

Deciding to take a chance, he whispered over to her. "Ayana, are you awake?"

She chuckled softly and turned over to face him, then asked with a playful gleam in her eyes. "What gave me away?"

"Ah, well, just a lucky guess." He joked back. She stared at him expectantly, and Ed realized she was waiting for him to speak. "So... that trick you just did. With the air. How do you do it?" He had to know, was dying to know, how it was physically possible for someone to control elements like that.

She flashed a half smile at him. "It's kind of hard to explain to a nonbender. It's a skill I was born with. The elements are an extension of my body, so with a lot of practice, I'm able to use my energy and body movements to control them."

"Born with? Hmm." That meant it wasn't something she could teach him. Damn, that kind of sucked. Ed had to admit, he had been fantasizing about learning how to bend fire just so he could show up that bastard Mustang. So much for that.

He was picturing himself throwing fireballs at Mustang when he heard her ask if he was an alchemist. He responded yes and, after a few follow-up questions, he explained the basics of what alchemy is and how it works. He also explained what a State Alchemist was, as well as a brief overview of a few of the more famous State Alchemists. Ayana was an easy person to talk to, an attentive listener, and was rivetted with his explanations.

After he'd finished speaking, she was quiet for a while as she absorbed the information. She finally asked, "Can I ask you a personal question? Feel free to not answer…." He nodded for her to continue. "Why did you join the military? You're so young."

He'd been expecting a question about Al, or his own automail. That's what most people asked about, and he was glad she didn't. It made it easier to protect Al's true nature. He could answer this question without revealing anything about his brother or their taboo.

"It's a long story. The short version is, Al and I were orphaned young, and we didn't have anywhere else to go. And the military has valuable research materials that are off-limits to regular civilians, and we need access to that in order to achieve our goals."

It was mostly true. Not entirely, but mostly. They could have lived with the Rockbells, or maybe even the Izumi and Sig. But the rest was true enough, even if it was vague.

Ayana nodded silently, accepting his answer. "Research materials, huh? You haven't ever seen or read anything that might have any information about spirits, have you?" There was hope in her voice, tinged with a bit of desperation.

"I've never seen anything about that subject, no…" Edward admitted. Her eyes shone with disappointment. "But I've also never looked for anything like that, either. Maybe when we get back from Resembool, we can take a look. Why is it so important, anyway?"

She met his gaze. "I have a feeling that a spirit portal is my only way home. Back in my world, the physical and spiritual realms are connected, and I'm able to pass between them by traveling through the portals at the north and south poles. The spirit world is huge, there are many areas there that I've never seen. It never occurred to me before that there could be portals to other worlds there, but…" She trailed off, and her eyes wandered away from his as a thoughtful expression crossed her face. "That's the only thing that make sense to me. If I can find your world's portal, I can cross into the spirit world and find the portal back to my world."

She lowered her voice a bit, speaking more to herself than to him now. "If no one's even heard of a portal here, maybe it's not located in this country. I don't have a choice, I'll have to find a spirit to ask for help…."

"What?" Ed wasn't sure he'd heard her right. Her eyes refocused as they shifted back to him. "Ask a spirit? How do you plan on doing that when spirits don't exist here?"

"What do you mean, 'spirits don't exist'? There's one inhabiting that suit of armor at this very moment." Ayana replied in an innocent tone.

Ed stared. She knew? How? Besides, Al's not a spirit, he's a… well… Ed supposed a soul is another way of saying spirit….

If she sensed or saw his reaction to her words, she didn't show any sign of it. She continued, "Just because they don't roam free in your world like they do in mine, doesn't mean that they don't exist. I can access their world another way, through meditation. But that only takes my spirit to their world, not my body. It will work to communicate with them, but not to return home."

Ed was still reeling from her nonchalant way of talking about Al's soul being bonded to armor. She didn't seem to think it was a big deal. He supposed maybe that was because spirits wandering free was a common thing in her world.

He suddenly found that he didn't want to talk anymore.

"When we get back from Resembool, Al and I will check out the libraries and see if we can find anything about spirit portals for you. Hopefully we can find something to help you." He said softly as he turned around to face away from her. He hoped she'd take the hint.

She did. She mumbled a thank you, and he heard her blankets rustling as she adjusted into a more comfortable position.

He closed his eyes, wishing for sleep to come, but he knew it was going to take a while for it to find him.