0.0...Dang... Note to self, check Edgar Allan Poe's poems more thoroughly next time before using them...Many thanks to Moony92 for pointing those details out to me, and to the rest of all you wonderful people for reading and reviewing!
My head's a little fuzzy from the cold I've gotten--I always seem to get these damn things earlier than everyone else!-- so please forgive me if I do anything stupid. I'm making this as long as I can because I feel guilty for making you guys wait.
Disclaimer: This lowly author owns nothing but this story.
Bound
at every limb by my shackles of fear
Sealed with lies through so
many tears
Lost from within, pursuing the end
I fight for the
chance to be lied to again
You will never be strong enough
You
will never be good enough
You were never conceived in love
You
will not rise above
They'll never see
I'll never be
I'll
struggle on and on to feed this hunger
Burning deep inside of
me
But through my tears breaks a blinding light
Birthing a
dawn to this endless night
Arms outstretched, awaiting me
An
open embrace upon a bleeding tree
Rest in me and I'll comfort
you
I have lived and I died for you
Abide in me and I vow to
you
I will never forsake you
They'll never see
I'll
never be
I'll struggle on and on to feed this hunger
Burning
deep inside of me
They'll
never see
I'll never be
I'll struggle on and on to feed this
hunger
Burning deep inside of me
Rest in me and I'll
comfort you
I have lived and I died for you
Abide in me and I
vow to you
I will never forsake you
They'll never see
I'll
never be
I'll struggle on and on to feed this hunger
Burning
deep inside of me
Evanescenc, Lies
Crimson, the color of blood and fire, reflected all around her. She slid weightlessly upward, reaching for something-- what, she did not know. She couldn't remember anything but pain, anger, and a deep, terrible sorrow, and waiting for someone to save her.
Save her...save her from what? What was she supposed to be saved from? From these bleeding depths, her own heart's blood? From herself?
A spark of gold caught her eye, and she watched it attentively. She touched it curiously, and then she saw a boy with golden eyes and golden hair gazing at her sadly. He reached for her, and she reached back. Before she could touch him, she felt herself slippping back down into the deep crimson shadows. Her vision closed over with red, and so she couldn't see the single tear that fell from the boy's cheek before he vanished.
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Ed snuck a glance out of the corner of his eye at Serena, who sat placidly between Al and Riza, staring into emptiness. It had taken a bit of coaxing to get her off of his arm, though Ed felt a bit of guilty enjoyment at the feel of her small, delicate hands gripping him so fiercely. Perhaps it had shown on his face, because Riza had given him a penetrating look at his half-hearted effort to make Serena let go.
The car hit a bump, jolting Serena so that she almost fell. Al grabbed her shoulder before she could slide off and hoisted her back into her seat. Her near unseating had sparked no reaction from her, and she looked on, listlessly as ever. Ed shut his eyes in pain and turned away.
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"She's settled," Riza said calmly, exiting the private room they had decided to put Serena in. When Ed and Al hurried into the room, the markswoman had to suppress a sigh of relief. Though she would never admit this to anyone, a part of her twinged in unease at the young girl's blank eyes, even though it was overrode by the pangs of sympathy in her heart. What kind of monster would do this to a child?
Riza's hand lingered over her gun. She would have loved to shoot the disgusting creature who had done this until he cast a polka-dotted shadow, but it appeared that she was a little too slow. Perhaps another time, then...
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Ed shoved his bangs away from his face, letting out an angry noise as he slapped down Tsukino's notes. The stupid bastard was brilliant, as much as he hated to say it. Extracting a human soul was a long and difficult process, and making diamonds out of tears wasn't exactly a walk in the park either.
His automail hand creaked faintly as he gripped the table, and burst into splinters when he closed down too hard. Ed shook the little chips out of his joints, taking care that one of them wouldn't get one of them stuck in his hand and foul the engineering up. Winry would be furious with him if he busted another arm up, and that fury would likely take wing involving wrenches and his head. Then he would have to pay a small fortune to have her remove the chip, and she would doubtless yell at him some more.
"Brother?"
Shit. He'd forgotten Al was in the room with him, and he'd doubtless scared his little brother with his silent outburst.
"Yeah, Al?"
"Are you alright?"
"..."
Al fell silent, obviously realizing what a stupid question that had been. When he looked up from the floor, Ed was poring over the notes again. Only the scattered bits of wood showed what had happened moments before.
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Roy Mustang sighed unhappily when he looked at Fullmetal's report. It seethed with barely contained rage in the words, and cruelly recounted every detail. The Colonel winced when he put it it down at last. Ed had been angry with him before, but this one took the cake. Before, Fullmetal ranted and raved and screamed at him for setting them out on a wild goose chase that was always more profitable to Mustang than to the Elrics. Now, he gifted the dark-haired man with a look that would have sent a lesser man running and screaming for his mother whenever he saw him.
Whenever he closed his eyes, empty blue eyes haunted his vision. Hecould have done something so that it wouldn't have turned out this way. No one deserved this fate. Mustang pushed a gloved hand through his hair, leaning into it as he tried to get the girl out of his head. Serena had looked like a fragile china doll, one that would shatter into bits in strong wind.
"Hey, Roy." A tired voice broke the Colonel out of his thoughts. He looked up to see Maes Hughes' face, eyes filled with sorrowful amusement as he looked at his best friend. The bespectacled man had been strangely subdued since he had seen Serena, and he hadn't shoved a picture of Elysia once in anyone's face all day. For a moment they both stood in silence before Mustang broke the silence.
"What I don't get is how a father could do that," he whispered.
"He was greedy," Hughes said, a slightly bitter smile on his face. "He saw wealth and power rather than his daughter, and he never saw what a treasure he had."
"How would you know about her?" Mustang asked, already knowing the answer. Hughes shrugged.
"I conducted an investigationon their family when I heard you'd sent Ed and Al on that mission. Apparently, Serena's pretty popular in the town. There's not one person in the town who hasn't seen her or spoken to her. She spent every minute she could out of the house, and from what the townspeople said, she likes to learn new things." Hughes grinned at his best friend's raised eyebrow. "Cooking, alchemy, art and music, and weapon and hand-to-hand combat lessons, you name it, every single day, and the rest of her time was either in the library or in the park. As near as I can figure, the only time she ever went back to her house was to sleep."
Mustang felt the little smile slip off his face.
"She must have known what was going to be waiting for her when she went back," he stated. Hughes nodded sadly.
"Serena's a smart girl. She probably would have run, given half the chance-- and she's probably tried, but Tsukino posted watchers everywhere so that she couldn't so much as sneeze without it being reported."
"What's going to happen to Tsukino's wife?" the Colonel questioned, not really caring.
"She's being charged with neglect and aiding a criminal, and a lot of other things I don't care to name," Hughes responded. "There's just one little problem, though."
"What's that?" Hughes' face twisted into a faint grimace.
"She's pregnant."
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Ed carefully place the Philosopher's Stone on Serena's bedside, losing himself for a moment in it's crimson depths. Fate had a sense of humor, apparently, even though it was rather warped. Here was the object he had been seeking for years, and yet he couldn't--wouldn't-- use it. The colder, more calculating part of him, the part that made him Fullmetal, actually considered the idea before he ruthlessly squashed it down.
To hide the shaking of his hands from Al, Ed smoothed Serena's hair back from her forehead, lightly combing it back. Despite the lack of expression on her face, she was still beautiful, still his childhood friend that he would always love. Hesitantly, he touched the scars on her collarbone. They were a raw, angry red, almost seeming to accuse him of his failure to save her. It had been three weeks, and he had yet to figure anything out.
Serena moved her hand, a small, timid gesture that he couldn't understand. She gestured again, fingers barely moving, and not knowing what to do, Ed froze. Al's shout made his head snap up in time to connect with a fist that sent him flying across the room.
Envy grinned smugly at the stunned alchemist, ignoring Lust's exasperated sigh from behind him.
"Sorry pipsqueak, fairytale kisses don't work in real life, so don't even think about trying it," Envy smirked, placing his hands on his hips. Ed struggled to his feet, his eyes widening when he saw how close the two homonculi were to Serena. Then the insult sunk in.
"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SOME SUPER-SHORT MIDGET WHO HAS TO USE A LADDER TO SEE OVER A FLEA?" he roared angrily. The green-haired sin snickered to himself as he got a successful rise out of the alchemist.
"Envy, this is no time for your little games!" Lust snapped. "Hold the boy so he doesn't mess things up."
Ed's eyes were like dinner plates as he strained against Envy's arms. Lust pinned Al to the wall with her claws while she grasped the Stone in her other hand-- and crushed it to powder.
Time seemed to stand still as Edward stared uncomprehendingly at the red dust that lay in the homonculus's hand. Nothing registered in his mind, just the little fragments of a soul as he went limp against Envy.
She was gone, gone, gone... The world echoed seizelessly inside his skull until he wanted to scream and block his ears. This was like losing Mom again, only a million times worse, because he knew he could have saved her. To Ed's overractive imagination, it was almost like Serena's flat sapphire eyes were glaring at him, accusing him.
You let them kill me. You let me die, her motionless lips seemed to whisper.
Lust carefully lengthened three fingers to reopen the wound on Serena's collar, then sprinkled the fragments into the wound. The wound pulsed with a silvery light, and then absorbed the fragments. A hiss escaped her mouth as the silver glow spread to her entire being. Small, pale hands clenched the sheets as her body convulsed at the sensation of the soul reentering the body. A pained keening noise rose from the back of her throat, and Ed snapped.
The alchemist wrenched himself free of Envy and lunged at Lust, an enraged cry working it's way out. Before he could touch the clawed woman, the glow dissipated, and Serena shot up, wide blue eyes with crystal tears of pain lingering on her lashes. She made a split second decision and jumped.
Ed yelped as he felt Serena's weight hit him on the chest and send him flying. They landed with a heavy thud, and Fullmetal could only gape up at Serena, who stared back at him, tears shining in her eyes once more.
"No, Ed, don't hurt them!" she begged. "Please, Ed, they're my friends, they saved me! Don't fight, please!"
The short alchemist's brain finally comprehended the fact that Lust and Envy had actually helped Serena. He could only stutter out a faint, "Wha..."
"They're my friends," Serena repeated stubbornly. "They won't hurt you if you don't try to hurt them, ri--" When she turned around, she saw that both the homonculi were gone. She made a face. "I hate it when they do that..."
"How?" Ed demanded finally.
"You got time for a long story?"
(AN: I'm sorry to say that I won't be writing out the part where Envy and Serena meet. My mom is going to start yelling at me to get off the computer any minute, as I've been on here all morning. However, if anyone wants to read how they met, say the word and I'll write a oneshot on it as soon as I get the chance. Okay, enought of that!)
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"You make the weirdest friends," Ed commented, taking a bite out of his apple. Al had run off and brought back a large bowl of fruit-- where he got it, they would never know-- as he had rightly assumed that both Ed and Serena would be starving, then vanished. The young girl kept a dignified silence, instead concentrating on cutting open her tangerine. She tossed the pit in the wastebasket and took a bite out of one of the sections, savoring the juicy sweetness. When she swallowed, she saw Ed smiling at her.
"What are you grinning at?" she asked, raising a golden eyebrow.
"You. I remember, when we were kids, whenever Mom got some tangerines from the market, she'd always give the first one to you, because they were your favorite," Ed recalled. Serena smiled and touched her locket, for a moment seeing Trisha's deep green eyes, sparkling at her and offering her a fruit, Here Serena, I got this one just for you!
"Do you remember the time all three of us drove off that lovesick idiot who was always hanging around your mother?" Serena said suddenly. Ed choked on his apple, laughing slightly.
"It's surprising how fast you can run when your pants are on fire and you're covered in honey," Ed grinned. Serena rolled her eyes.
"Honestly, Ed, did you have to throw the beehive at him, too? You got stung a few times yourself," she said. Ed laughed.
"It was worth it! He shot off like the devil himself was on his tail whenever he saw us!" Serena had to laugh as well at that particular memory.
Ed smiled at her, his golden eyes warm and gentle. The young girl stopped laughing and blushed. The redness only deepened when her friend's expression didn't change.
"You should laugh more often," he said abruptly. "It makes you look really pretty."
"So should you," she retorted, still red in the face. He thinks I'm pretty?
Edward's eyes saddened, and he turned away, his eyes half-shutting. He looked so unhappy that Serena couldn't help but reach over and embrace him, laying her head against his shoulder, feeling the cold bluntness of his automail against her cheek. She hesitated, then set her jaw.
"Ed," she said softly. "You and Al tried to bring back your mother, didn't you?" He stiffened and pulled away from her.
"How did you know?" he demanded harshly.
"I guessed," Serena said grimly. "It didn't take much-- Al felt so cold, and he sounded hollow when I hugged him, and there's no way he could have grown that much in just a few years. Your arm and leg were gone, so there wasn't much else to consider but human transmutation."
Ed turned away from her, lightly touching his metal arm. When he spoke, his voice was bitter and angry.
"We were pretty stupid, huh? We thought--I thought-- that we could override the powers of nature. We ignored the books, Auntie Pinako, our teacher's warning... This-- this is our just reward. God doesn't like it when people overstep their limits."
"Shut up," Serena whispered, blinking away her tears. Ed turned around, his eyes wide as she continued fiercely. "There's nothing wrong with wanting to see your mother again. If I had been in your shoes, I would have done the exact same thing."
"That doesn't excuse it," Ed snapped.
"No, it doesn't," she agreed. "But ripping yourself apart from the inside isn't doing you or Al any good. Trust me-- I learned that lesson the hard way."
Serena's features softened when she saw Ed stop yelling. It had taken someone who had been through just as much as he had to slap him in the face with the truth. She walked forward and put her arms around him, clutching him to her. The familiar smell of leather, new books and steel assaulted her nose, and she couldn't help but wonder what she smelled like to him. Ed's lithe frame shook as he buried his face in her shoulder, and Serena felt wetness dampen her shirt. She stroked his hair gently, trying to help him but not knowing how.
"Oh, Ed," she said sadly. "How long has it been since you cried?"
He didn't say anything, but the wet feeling on her shoulder increased. Ed was so proud, too proud-- was it that pride, as well as his love for his mother, that led to his downfall? No-- her friend did not let his pride taint his love.
Ed pulled away from her, his golden eyes shining with tears, dripping from his lashes-- and kissed her.
Serena was so stunned that she didn't react at first, then closed her eyes sadly and kissed back. Ed didn't know what he was doing-- he was so sad and bitter and lost in memories that he needed release. Nevertheless, if it gave him comfort... She ignored the feeling of bitterness, of being used as a tool, and concentrated on Ed. His mouth was warm and tasted salty from his tears, as well as an underlying sweetness from the apple he had eaten earlier.
Ed's arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her closer, kissing her desperately instead of gently now.
Would he be kissing you like this, like a lover, if he thought of you as a tool for release?
I...don't know...
Serena pressed closer to Ed, trying to lose herself in the lie that he was kissing her out of love, and trying to ignore the tears that slid down her cheeks and mixed with Ed's on the ground.
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And once again, I've probably royally screwed up the romance. Hey, I've never had a boyfried OR a crush-- I'm not lying-- so please try and accept my poor efforts. So, if you'll excuse me I gotta go hide somewhere.
Ed: AHA! There you are!
Too late... (flees from Ed's wrath)
Read and review, please!