Her Answers.
Afternoon rapidly came creeping down the sky--everything was happening so fast. The sky burned with a bright aquamarine color, spurts of white dappling it here and there in small patches. The wind kissed anyone who was caught in its way; yet it was off as quick as it had arrived. The grasses danced like swaying emerald figurines, waltzing with the wind and playing in the sun. The rays stabbed at the earth like pillars of light, trying to crush anything caught in its path. The gurgling of unseen brooks and streams mixed with the rather annoying chirps and tweets of birds filled the air, creating a rather romantic scene in the Risembool country. The sound of the train spitting steam into the air and the loud roar of its engine had completely faded after leaving the outskirts. The smell of freshness was everywhere; Resembool was truly a beautiful place.
The three of them walked side by side, almost like soldiers. Each of their heads were hanging rather low, yet they were completely aware of their surroundings. It seemed as though, and it was true, that each of them had a reason to be acting this way. And it was also true that the other didn't know what they were being troubled about, yet didn't bother to ask. "Terrie?" It was Ed, whom wanted to break the silence rather quickly. It was growing very uncomfortable between them. "If you don't mind me asking...why did you move to Lior City when we left Resembool?" Then quiet fell on each of them once again. When Al noted Teresa's solemn expression, he wasn't hesitant to snap at his brother. "Ed!" he barked, then looked back to Teresa. She was watching the road now. "Well..." she began, numerically ordering the reasons why she left in her mind. "You two had a large part of my heart. We were best friends...and then you left without saying anything to me." She put her left hand above her chest. "You don't want details, do you?" Ed's soft golden eyes burned into her gray ones. She forced a smile on her face, but nothing appeared. Instead, she turned to the sky, watching the clouds snake across the aquamarine background slowly.
"I was staying at Winry's that night. I looked out the window while I was just waking up and saw a red glare across the plain. I thought maybe it was the sun, but the sun was already up. I remembered that you two had told me you were going on some kind of mission and that you were leaving soon. I didn't know that day was going to be the day you left," she said, rather brokenly. "When I remembered, I bolted out of that house and I ran as fast as I could to yours. When I got there the only thing that greeted me was glowing furniture and a whirlwind of smoke. I thought maybe something had happened in the house and so I looked, but I saw nothing. I stayed until I could only see ashes. I managed to recover this." She pulled out a scrap of square paper and handed it to Ed. It was a photograph Ed, Al and their mother, Trisha. "I figured if you wanted to burn down your house, you wanted to forget something. I was hesitant about picking up that scrap of paper. But I saved it from the flames." Ed choked on his words as he stared at the photograph; the edges were burnt and crusty, and the entire photograph was crinkled.
"I remember staring at the ashes of your house for hours. Winry finally went out looking for me and she's the one who helped me up. Of course, I had inhaled too much smoke and was taken to the hospital. I payed money just to breathe out of a paper bag." She turned away from both of them, as though hurt and disgusted. There was more than one reason why she left Resembool, and she wasn't about to tell them just yet. Perhaps she never would. Ed looked up at her, put the photograph in one of his pockets. "I'm sorry, Terrie." he told her. "Just too much stuff had happened..." Terrie waved him off. "It's alright. My heart is recovering." She bowed her head with a grin. Ed cried out in surprise. Terrie shook her head. She had a faint smile on her face as she tugged on a chain at her neck. It flopped onto her enormous chest, revealing a heart.
She felt a hand on her shoulder. "I'm so sorry, Terrie." he repeated. "I really am." She shrugged his hand off. "Like I said, it's alright." Then she turned to Al. "And why haven't you said anything?" she asked. She brushed some tufts of her blonde locks away from her eyes. Al looked up at her. "I'm thinking about...you. I'm trying to remember who you were when we were little kids." Teresa cocked her head. "You're saying you don't remember anything?" she asked, looking rather disappointed. He shook his head. "Nothing at all, Al?" He shook his head again. Her eyes sank hellward. "I have something that might help," she said, then reached in her bag. She pulled out another photograph; this time the stars of the picture were Al and Teresa. They were covered in butterflies.
Al looked over the picture. "You caught me that butterly. I named him Alphonse because of you. You went all the way down to the pond chasing that thing; you could've easily gotten another one, but you liked this one for me, because he had a unique blue stripe on his right wing." Al tried, as hard as he could, to remember. But it was hard. He had lost the majority of all memory. "No?" She looked disappointed again.
"Would you like something to drink, Terrie?" Winry asked, her bright eyes sparkling happily. Teresa nodded. "Something hot would be nice." she said softly, her eyes narrowing in a slight sadness. She folded her hands in her lap, sitting across from Ed, whom watched her every move, as though trying to decode her. Ed seemed deeply interested in Teresa, like he never has been before. Something about this girl reeled him in like a funnel. "How is Adam doing?" he asked her, his eyes not leaving her figure. "My brother was assassinated shortly after I settled in Lior." She seemed rather strong to have gone through so many trials, each almost completely equivalant to the last. Ed winced in sympathy. "I'm sorry to hear that." he said.
Winry then appeared, and handed Teresa a white mug. "Hot chamomile tea for Terrie!" Winry said, placing a bottle of honey and some sugar packets on the small table in front of her. "Thank you, Winry." Teresa said. Winry shrugged with a childish grin and giggled. "So, Ter...what is it that you do over there in Lior City?" Winry asked, taking a bite out of a fresh biscuit. "I'm studying to be a priestess," she responded. "You can say I live in the church." Ed swallowed, then conjured up the courage to ask. "Have you heard of the Frozenhearted Alchemist? They say she lived in Lior..." he asked, putting his elbows on his knees and his chin on his fists. He trembled nervously. Teresa nearly choked on her tea when she heard him. "Ooh, that's cold," she yelped. Winry stood up. "It's cold?" she asked, looking at the white mug. The rim of the mug was covered in a thin blanket of ice. "That's odd." She examined Teresa, whom looked calmly back at her. "Would you like some more? I'm sorry about this one--I just finished taking it off the stove, though...hmm..." Teresa shook her head. "It's okay, Win." With that said, Winry collected the mug. "I'll be right back." she told them.
Ed observed the ring of ice around the mug. His eyes narrowed suspiciously at it. They travelled almost isolatedly to Teresa, whom was taking a small bite out of her biscuit. "Kiss me." It came out more like a demand. Al and Teresa cried out in shock--Winry stopped in her tracks. Ed glared up at Teresa with his golden eyes. "You heard me. It's just a little kiss. I need to make sure of something." Winry's fingers closed in around the mug, cracking it. "Excuse me?" she roared, fuming. Teresa suddenly looked perplexed as she placed the tip of her index fingers together. She began talking quickly and nervously. "Um, Ed, I-I don't really think I--" Ed stood up, staring down at her with a doggish sort of leer. It was soft, but still very strong. "C'mon, it's just a kiss, Ter. One kiss." Al stood as well, in defense of Teresa. The mug exploded in Winry's hand before he could say anything. Everyone, except Ed, turned to see what had happened.
Mistake. Ed put his left hand behind Teresa's head and drew her in with such a force. He plastered his lips against hers in an unwanted kiss. "Stop, brother!" Al called. There was a loud sputter. Everyone stood in shock as they saw what Teresa had done. With her hands on her hips, she leered irritably down at Ed, whom clutched his cheek. Then she let out a small, childish giggle and turned to Winry, whose jaw had dropped quite low. "Now what did that prove?" Teresa asked Ed, rather cockily. Ed sat back down. "You're right. I'm sorry," he told her, his hand still on his cheek. It seemed to glow very brightly underneath his gloved hand. "I shouldn't have judged you." Terrie erupted in anger. "You shouldn't have kissed me!" she roared. Ed's eyes looked up at hers. "That too."
Terrie pulled up her sleeve, revealing a leather watch. "Oh, shoot," she said, then peered up at Winry. "I should've stayed in Central. The military said their new shipments would be arriving sometime around eight tonight." Ed seemed to be reminiscing about something. "I'll be back later!" Teresa turned on her heels and opened the front door. She disappeared behind it. "Wait, Terrie!" Al called, snapping out of his momentary shock. "Where are you going?" he asked her, shutting the door behind them. He slowly went to her, watched her turn around. "I own a store in Central now," she said laconically. "An armory. The military is quite fond of it." Al examined her. She would only offer him a wry smile, and nothing more. "So you're moving back to Resembool?" he asked, his childish voice cracking again. Her light eyes glittered submissively. "I can't say that," she told him. "Since I don't have a house here." Her wry smile disappeared. Her lips were now just a straight line across her face--one that exposed a strong distaste or an inevitable spark of irritation.
"My store is practically trashed. It's taking a while to get it organized, especially because the previous owner used it as a butchery. I've managed to get rid of the stench, though." She turned back around. "If you want to know anything else, you'll have to wait until I get back to Winry's. That is...if you're still here when I do." With that said, she started off toward the horizon. Al's heart sank. It hurt him to know that she wasn't about to hand him her heart again, but more so that she can't trust him. The truth was painstakingly obvious; Teresa had changed, even if Al couldn't remember exactly how she was when they were kids. Al clenched his fists. "In case you don't know, Terrie," Al growled, "Some people still love you just as much as back then." Teresa stopped, only to peer over her shoulder at him. "Is that why you didn't tell me?" She would stay for nothing more; she wasn't in the mood to hear it. Right now she had work to do, and perhaps that was more important.