Disclaimer: Nope, don't own Fullmetal Alchemist. Probably never will.

Author's Note: In case you readers haven't noticed, I'm going between flashbacks of that day and the present in Amestris. It might seem confusing at first, but they clear up and there are separating lines. Anyway, I hope you all like this chapter! R/R please!
Revamping!

Chapter 3-Reunited

"I'll go talk to him," Winry said and started to stand.

Isabel beat her to the punch, though. "No, I think I should go. After all…it's kind of my fault," she said, shrugging. She was out the door before anyone could protest.

It took the eldest Elric a while to find her younger brother. She looked around at all of their old favorite places. When she came to the site of her house, she was surprised to see the ashes and remains of the building. For some reason, Isabel knew the boys had done that. She couldn't blame Ed and Al, though, for doing it, but she didn't understand why. Isabel finally came across Ed at the river. He was transmuting the ground into rocks and skipping them along the water surface. When he sensed her watching him, he turned.

"What do you want?" he snapped.

Isabel winced, but came down to the river's edge with him. "I'm sorry," she murmured. "It's probably a shock to you."

"What, some crazy person claiming to be a sister I barely remember having?" he assumed.

She picked up a rock and tossed it in the air a few times. "But you do remember me," Isabel said quietly.

Ed tossed the rock with a greater amount of force and it skipped a few times before finally going below the surface. "Of course I remember you! You left me and Al when you were only eight!" he said loudly. "Why wouldn't I remember someone who did that to me?"

With a little shrug, she looked at the rock thoughtfully. "It couldn't be helped." This wasn't how she had imagined the day to go, exactly.

"Why?" Ed turned to look at her.

It took a little while for Isabel to respond. During the moments of silence, she put both hands around the rock and blue light surrounded it for a moment. When she opened her hands, the rock had been changed to a duplicate of the Nationally Certified Alchemists' silver watch. "I can't tell you yet," she said. "Maybe another time, but not now."

Ed looked at the replica and sighed. "Why can't you tell me?"

Isabel chuckled a little. "You're just as persistent as you were when we were younger." She sobered again and took Ed's left hand. "I can't tell you because you aren't ready to hear it yet," she told him and put the stone into his hand.

Hopefully he saw her previous statement as an end to the conversation and wasn't just trying to coax her into telling him why because he changed the subject. "Are you a State Alchemist as well?" he asked her.

She shook her head. "No. I have done some work with the military, though, as a civilian. I worked with a few alchemists along the way," Isabel said. "Some of them were really powerful and seemed to do alchemy without a circle. Others had to be covered by others while they drew an array on something."

"What did you do?" Ed asked and put the stone in his pocket.

Isabel held out her wrists. "I covered sometimes. Mostly, I'd do my own thing since I wasn't bound by orders," she explained. "Your one of them, aren't you?"

"A State Alchemist? Yeah." He pulled out the silver clock from his other pocket and showed her.

"Is it an actual clock, or is it just an amplifier? I never got close enough to one to see," she said.

Ed nodded. "It's a clock, too. Al and I don't use it often, though. We've learned to tell time from the position of the sun. It's normally just for show," he informed her.

Isabel nodded and sat down. She looked out over the hills and smiled. "I'm glad I decided to come back when I did," she murmured and shut her eyes.

----------------

It had been about an hour since Isabel and Riza had come back from shopping. Isabel was feeling a little uneasy as she sat on Mustang's couch. She smoothed her black skirt down busily then poked at a loose string on her blouse. Obviously her nervousness showed from Mustang's comment.

"That string is not going to get any better if you keep pulling it," he told her. Had she really been tugging on it that much?

"Sorry," she whispered.

"It's fine, though I don't think Hawkeye will appreciate it if you ruin the shirt she just bought you because of nervous energy," he pointed out.

Isabel nodded. "I guess not." She was talking a little more now, but hardly more than five syllables at a time. Mostly, she'd forget to say yes or no and just shake her head if Mustang or Riza asked her something.

"They should be here soon," the colonel said. He leaned back in his chair and rubbed his neck. "Don't look so sad."

She shrugged and looked down at her folded hands. Why had she let herself become so shy? Wouldn't it have been easier for her to keep her hotheadedness while she'd been in the psychiatric ward? If she'd spoken her mind, then maybe she would have been more confident now. Instead, she dreaded when attention was set on her. And that was just what was happening to her in a few short minutes. But didn't she want this attention? Didn't she want to see her brother's again? God knew she did, and everyone else for that matter.

There was a bit of a commotion down the hall. Isabel looked up, but Mustang didn't seem to notice it. She dismissed it, as well, to be something that didn't concern her or her past. She looked up at the ceiling and thought. What would it be like? Would it be a happy moment, filled with hugs? Or would it be a sobered moment where everyone was distant? Would they even come? Would they care that she was alive?

Of course they would! She mentally shook herself. She was their sister! Why wouldn't they care if she were alive? How could she have even thought of something so unfair for herself? They would care. If they didn't, then she didn't need them anyway, right?

The seconds seemed to pass like minutes, and the minutes like hours when Mustang finally looked up at his door. Obviously, he had heard the disruptions outside in the hall. A few moments after that, the doors opened wide and a group of four people walked in. There was an extremely tall, extremely muscular person in the back. A suit of armor stood out secondly. A young girl, probably around fifteen, was standing behind a boy a little shorter than she. His blond hair was braided and his gold eyes searched the room.

When Ed's gaze fell on Isabel, she smiled shakily and stood up. He rushed over to her and they stood nose-to-nose. A trace of satisfaction came into his eyes, but only briefly. Ed looked hard at Isabel before finally embracing her tightly. She couldn't help the same reaction. Her hands shook as she wrapped her arms around her brother.

They broke apart after that and Isabel went to Al. She hugged him best she could, and then stood before Winry. The two girls hadn't really gotten along the best when they had been younger. Some of the childish hostility may have carried through the years and Isabel wasn't sure how to handle it. But when Winry embraced her, Isabel knew there weren't any hard feelings.

Colonel Mustang sat and watched the entire ordeal. Major Armstrong came and stood beside his desk, but the colonel hardly noticed. He was amazed at the sudden change in Isabel's disposition when she was around her family.

"It's a wonderful thing, isn't it? The power of family?" Armstrong said, watching them as well. His sparkles were showing more than ever, but the colonel ignored him.

Mustang nodded. "Yeah. And to think, she had been sitting on that couch there, nervous as anything." He smirked. "Hopefully she'll be the Isabel that they knew six months ago."

"Colonel?"

He sat up straighter and shook his head. "Nothing." He saluted the major. "As you were."

Armstrong saluted as well and left. Colonel Mustang sighed a little and went back to his paperwork. He normally steered clear of such tasks as long as possible, but this was important. These held facts about the mysterious girl standing on the other side of the room. His report would explain in as few words as he could of what she'd told him about the past six months.

--------------------

Ed, Al, Winry, and Isabel all sat on the grass in the park. They were a few blocks away from the headquarters building, and Ed was painfully aware of the few guards that were hovering around, trying not to be seen. What business did they have sticking their noses where they didn't belong? None, and Ed was very close to enunciating that point verbally.

"Edward?" Winry said, touching his hand.

Reflexively, he took his hand from under hers and brought it to his chest. "Yes?"

"You looked…distant," she murmured.

He looked at Isabel and shrugged. "So does she." Although it wasn't really a valid excuse, it was an excuse all the same. Ed didn't want Winry to know what he'd been thinking about; he didn't want her to get involved with the military more than she was already, associating with him.

"She's been through a lot, Edward," Winry told him, quietly still. "She has a right to be distant. Wouldn't you be too if you…you know?" She couldn't finish. Just like Winry to be sheepish about other problems that were too big for her to confront on her own.

Ed stood up. "I'm gonna walk," he announced. "Isabel, do you want to come with me?" he asked her.

Isabel looked up and nodded. She even attempted a slight smile as she stood to join him. They walked a little ways, leaving Winry and Alphonse to themselves. When the two siblings reached the far end of the park, Isabel sat down on a bench and stared off into the sky. Ed stood a little to the side before sighing.

It had been bothering him all day. Why had she never tried to contact him? Even if she hadn't been allowed to, if she'd tried hard enough, then she could have gotten a letter sent at least. She could have managed some word to one of the visiting military officials, right? Just because she didn't talk much now didn't mean had she stopped talking then, right? But what really irked him was the fact she refused to talk so much to anyone! Didn't she care that people were worried about her? Didn't she care that people wanted to know what was on her mind to help her?

"Isabel?" he asked quietly, sitting beside her.

"Yes, Ed?" She looked at him softly. The expression on her face, the pure sister-like way she looked at him made him drop the carefully planned façade of arrogance and assume the fear he really felt.

He leaned back and clasped his hands behind his head. "Why don't you talk much anymore?" he asked, jumping right to the point. If he hadn't been so undone the he would have approached the matter more tactfully.

Her silence was enough. She was thinking of a good way to put it. She pulled her hand through her golden hair the same way he did when he let it down and was thinking. They were so alike; their eyes and hair were the same color, they were the same height, and their attitude and disposition were so much the same. Or they had been. While she had been a fiery, quick-tempered girl, eager to get into anything fun or troublesome, she was now a meek, shy child. Even though she was older, Ed could tell she looked up to him more than she used to when they had been younger. Why had this happened? Why had she changed? Who had caused her to?

"I…stopped talking when I was in Dublith," she murmured. Ed started, surprised that she had given up words. "There was no use to let them know that I was thinking about using alchemy to escape all the time, was there? If they knew what went on in my head, then they probably would have tried to take my tattoos off." She shrugged. "Also, I didn't see a reason in talking to anyone there. There were crazy people, ex-military personnel, and then people who didn't have a thing wrong with them. There was no reason for me to become like them. If I resigned and talked to the psychiatric personnel, then it was like I had given up and given into the fact that no one was going to save me. Then there was the colonel." She smirked a little.

"Ah yes, the colonel," Ed growled. "Why didn't you try to write?" he asked, the slightest bit of hurt tainting his voice.

"I tried, Ed, I really did. For the first few weeks, I tried to get a letter out. I would write them during my sessions, steal an envelope and stamps, and then give it to the janitor to send. The next day, someone would come and talk to me about trying to contact the outside world. They told me everyone thought I was dead, that no one cared." Her voice started to catch. "After a while, I just gave up on trying to write anybody. If I was meant to get out, then a way would present itself."

He nodded a little. There was logic, but he was still a little hurt that she'd given up on writing.

When neither of them seemed to be willing to speak, Isabel felt a need to break the silence. A strange occurrence she admitted to herself, but she wanted to know something. She looked at Ed a little uneasily. "What happened to Al?" she asked. "I know there's nothing in that suit." She bit her lip immediately.

Ed winced a little, but leaned forward. "It's our punishment," he said. "We…did something very wrong about four years after you left us. I was eleven, and Al was ten. Mom had died about a year before." He swallowed. "We tried to perform a human transmutation, but failed. In the equivalent trade, Al lost his body and I…I lost…"

"Your arm and leg?" she finished for him. He nodded. "Will you let me see?"

Hesitantly, Ed held out his right arm to her. Isabel took his glove off, set it on her leg and began to survey the auto-mail. Winry had done a fine job, he thought to himself, repairing it so many times. Occasionally, she would have to put a new plate on it. On those occurrences, he was sure to be scarce after it for a while.

"Does it ever hurt?" Isabel asked. Suddenly, a wave of déjà vu washed over her.

He thought a moment. "Sometimes. It'll stretch the skin on my shoulder if I over extend it. Other than that, no."

Isabel nodded and intently examined his arm. This gave him a chance to look her over. She had changed a lot since he'd last seen her. Her gold locks were a little longer than his. She might have been a little taller, but he wasn't going to dwell on that. What he really noticed was her eyes. Yes, the rest of her face appeared tired, but her eyes looked so exhausted. Her fatigue was painfully obvious in her gold orbs.

"Ed?"

"Did the military tattoo your wrists a long time ago, or did you do it independently?" he asked, shrugging off her concern. He glanced down at his metal arm. She had replaced his glove and was holding his hand now.

"The military did them. They had to sedate me, though." She smiled timidly. "Can you still perform alchemy without a circle?" Isabel wanted to know.

Ed nodded. He looked around, anxiously before he stood. "Watch," the boy said and clapped his hands together. He reached out a touched a tree. A moment later, it changed to a lemonade stand.

"Practical," she told him. They lapsed into silence once more. Isabel was curious about something, but too shy, now, to say anything about it.

It was Ed's turn to break the silence. "I, uh, still have that replica of the State Alchemist watch," he said, digging in his pocket for it. After a moment, he handed it to Isabel and sat down.

Memories suddenly engulfed her mind as soon as she touched the stone.

---------------------

Edward and Isabel walked up from the riverbank. It was probably a little after one o'clock, but Auntie would have some stew left for them. Well, at least for Ed, since he hadn't eaten anything yet. When the house came into view, Armstrong and Al could be seen training. Isabel recognized the gleam of anticipation in her brother's eyes.

"Go train, and show me what you've got," she said, giving him a gently nudge in that direction.

Ed didn't hesitate. He smiled brightly and then ran the rest of the way so he could intercept the major's blow at Al. Isabel kept her pace. When she was a few feet away, she sat on the fence to watch. For a few minutes, Armstrong had the upper hand until the brothers came at him at once. In what seemed like mere seconds, the much bigger man was flat on his back, a crater contoured to his large body. Isabel had to replay the moment to note how it had happened.

Armstrong had just slammed Al onto the ground when Ed reappeared again after his brother's titanic-like blow. The brothers exchanged looks and nodded to each other before staging their attack.

Al went straight to Major Armstrong so their hands were locked together. Neither could move. Ed slid between Al's ankles, his metal leg outstretched. The Fullmetal Alchemist's foot connected with Armstrong's, causing the bigger man to lose balance. Al immediately started to pull Armstrong over his shoulder.

There was a huge crash that shook the earth. Isabel held onto the fence to keep from falling off. When things stilled, she looked at Ed and Al. The youngest was just standing up straighter. He and Ed exchanged looks again before they broke into a victory dance.

"Yes!" they shouted in unison.

"We did it, Al!" Ed shouted. Then they paused.

Ed and Al looked at their sister simultaneously. She nodded her praise to him and smiled. Just as she was going to voice her opinion, Winry stepped out of the house. She looked at Ed, at Al, at the semi-unconscious Armstrong, at Isabel, and then back at Ed. Her face immediately contorted into fury. "Edward!" she yelled shrilly.

Ed's eyes widened in shock. Very arrogantly, he turned around to glare at her. "What?" he shouted back. But he regretted his tone as soon as he caught sight of her expression. He took a couple steps back, but it was useless. Winry advanced on her prey and seized his arm. The boy struggled but Winry's grasp was too strong to break out of.

"What did I do?" Ed was yelling as Winry dragged him into the house.

"You damaged your arm already!" she screeched. "You idiot!"

"I did not damage it!"

"Yes, you did, you little bean!"

"I am not a bean! Who are you calling a bean!"

Isabel and Al exchanged flustered looks as the two disappeared but could still be heard. "Uh, do they usually do that?" Isabel asked.

Al nodded. "Sometimes it's worse."

She shivered in fear of how "worse" could play out.

Suddenly, the yelling couldn't be heard anymore. Isabel looked at the house and said, "Maybe I should go see if they killed each other." She slipped off the fence and started toward the house. She tried to be quiet coming in, but the door creaked when she opened and shut it. With the stealth that had helped her win many battles in the wars she'd helped in, she crept to the living room. She almost gasped when she peeked in.

Winry was working fervently on Ed's arm. That wasn't too surprising. Ed's expression was, however. Her brother, the one person who could happily live without touching anyone or being touched, who would never depend on someone voluntarily, was sitting on the floor almost quietly. His face was peaceful as Winry poked around his shoulder with a screwdriver. Every now and then, she would push his hair away or her hand would brush his shoulder, just at the edge of his auto-mail. From what Isabel remembered about Ed, and from what she'd heard that day, he hardly ever appreciated physical contact.

Yet here he was, enjoying his mechanic's touch. What a situation.

Isabel silently excused herself and went to sit on the porch. Winry's dog, Den, came up to her and nudged her hand. She scratched Den's head idly for a moment, mulling things over.

It'd been nine years since she left. Things hadn't changed much, except for Ed and Al. And herself, of course. The military did strange things to your mind. Granted, Al wasn't a dog of the military, but he was around them and Ed enough to be affected by it. Ed was a State Alchemist and was given orders frequently. Isabel did things independently and when she saw something worth doing. That was usually rare, but during her lack of interest, the military normally found something to keep her busy. Why let a perfectly good alchemist go to waste?

It must have been a while later when she came back to earth from her absently placed thoughts. Ed was nudging her side with his foot and holding out a bowl to her. His stew was already half-eaten.

"Thanks," she murmured and took the bowl from him.

Ed sat down next to her to finish his stew. "So," he sighed.

"Can you…can you feel your arm at all?" Isabel asked. She immediately took a bite of her food so she couldn't repeat herself.

He smirked a little and finished chewing. "Not really, no. It give me an advantage in battles," he told her. "When Al and I were in Lior, looking for the Philosopher's Stone-"

"The Stone?"

Ed nodded. "We encountered a man, posing as a reverend. He had created a chimera from a lion and a great lizard. Well, it bit my arm and I could have cared less!" he exclaimed proudly.

"Why are you searching for the Stone?" Isabel wanted to know.

With a sigh, the boy leaned back onto his hands, his bowl empty already. "We've been searching for it for three years," he evaded answering quietly. "We haven't found anything but dead ends and empty clues. We want to increase the power of our alchemy for…specific reasons."

Isabel nodded, more to herself than to Ed. She halfway understood why he didn't want to tell her everything yet. She wasn't sure she could tell him things about her life yet, either. But, in a sisterly way, she reached back and touched his hand-his real hand. She was afraid he would shirk away, but she knew that even just the gesture would mean something to him, even if he couldn't accept her touch.

But surprisingly, he didn't pull his hand away from her. He smiled at her briefly before he went off into his own world.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm sorry I left you and Al."