see? i'm actually keeping my promise for once! go me! i should get a reward!
seriously, fork over the cash
that way, i can bribe the judge if somebody sues me for claiming to own FMA. WHICH I DON'T! or Aka. WHICH I DO!
Recap- Winry took off Ed's metal arm, leaving him with just his left. He and Aka had a little scene under the stars, and Ed told Aka he'd take her on a tour of Resmimbool.
Start- Aka's POV: You groaned and sat up, not quite wanting to wake up yet. Then you remembered- Ed was taking you on a tour today! Grinning like a maniac, you jumped out of bed and tackled your bag, pulling out a pair of long shorts and a red tank top. Fiddling with your hair, you rushed out of your room and almost tripped down the stairs.
"Why are you in such a hurry Aka?" Came an echoed voice. Looking around, you saw Al sitting at the table with Winry and Pinako.
"Ed promised to take me on a tour today," You told him, "Guess I'm a little excited."
"A tour?" Pinako echoed, "I didn't realized Resimbool was interesting enough for a tour." You shrugged, sitting down across from her.
"Maybe not, but I still wanna go," You answered, "Besides, we've been traveling so much that I havn't gotten the chance to just kick back and check out where I am. It'll be a nice break."
"We do seem to be on the move a lot," Al admitted, "But we were in Iseila for a long time." You frowned, trying to remember just how long you'd stayed there.
"Well, I wouldn't call...four days- a very long time." You said, counting the days on your fingers. "And we were working most of the time."
"I suppose you're right," Al said. You suddenly grinned, getting an idea.
"Hey! I know! How about you come with us Al? You too Winry!" You said enthusiastically. Al jerked his head back and Winry started blinking.
"I dunno," Al said playfully, "Are you sure you don't want to spend time with Ed?" You rolled your eyes.
"Gimme a break Al- I've been spending time with him this whole trip! It'll be nice to have more than one babysitter!" Winry sighed and shook her head.
"I can't go, I have to fix-"
"That attitude of yours." Pinako interrupted, taking her pipe out of her mouth. Winry looked at her in surprise.
"What do you-"
"It's been ages since you spent time with the boys. This will be a good chance for you to catch up. Besides, I can fix Ed's arm myself." Pinako said firmly.
"But I kinda wanted to try all of those new techniques..." Winry pouted. Pinako waved a hand at her.
"I won't start the details just yet. I'll just make the outline. I assume you can work off of that?"
"Of course!" Winry said. Then, turning to you, she smiled, "Okay then Aka, I guess I'm going with you."
"All right!" You cheered, punching the air, "Less Ed to take care of!"
"Oh c'mon Aka, Brother's not that bad..." Al said. You looked at him in horror.
"Are you insane? It's hard work making sure he doesn't fall into sidewalk cracks!" Pinako and Winry burst out laughing, but quickly stopped when a voice rang out.
"WHAT WAS THAT ABOUT SIDEWALKS?" Came an annoyed voice. You smirked, but didn't bother turning around.
"Nothing Ed, just wanted to see if you were awake."
"Well then, how thoughtful of you." Ed said sarcastically, taking a seat next to you. "Now what were you guys saying before that?"
"We're coming with you on Aka's tour!" Winry said with a smile. Ed looked slightly surprised, but then shrugged.
"More the merrier I guess." He said nonchalantly. Reaching across the table, he grabbed a piece of fruit that was adorned decoratively on the middle of the table and shoved it in his mouth. "When are we leaving?"
"As soon as possible!" You said before anyone else could open their mouth.
"We'd better eat breakfast first." Winry said, quickly killing all hope of an early start. You groaned, letting your head fall to the table.
"Great, by the time Ed finishes breakfast it'll be time for lunch." You said, pouting. Winry giggled and Ed shot you a glare.
"Quit exaggerating..." He muttered. You just smiled brightly.
"Oh, I have the perfect idea!" Winry said, clapping her hands, "Let's have a picnic!"
"That sounds great!" You said, matching her enthusiasm perfectly. "I'll help you pack it!"
"You two do that, I'm getting breakfast..." Ed grumbled, getting up. In a few moments, he was already across the room and raiding Winry's food pantry.
"He sure can move fast for someone with such short legs." You said, ducking as a large sack of potatoes was thrown at you. Smirking, you quickly helped Winry throw some things into a basket and grabbed Ed, dragging him out of the house before he could complain.
The three of you walked down the hill from Winry's house, Al carrying the picnic basket. You were walking out in front of everybody, so twirled around and started walking backwards, facing them.
"So when did you guys all meet?" You asked, trying to keep your balanced on the sloped ground. Winry and the Elrics all looked at each other, shrugging.
"We just kinda grew up as friends," Winry said, "I don't really remember a time I didn't know these two."
"Neither do I." Ed admitted, Al nodding in agreement. "But our Mom and Winry's parents were pretty good friends, so I guess they kinda set us up."
"That and the fact we all went to the same school." Al added, looking in the direction you assumed their old school was.
"Oh yeah...but I remember playing with you guys before we started school." Winry said thoughtfully.
"I guess it just means we've known each other for a long time...hey, can we break for lunch now?"
"Ed! It's only been five minutes!" You cried, tossing a small ball of lightning at his head. He winced as it came on perfect contact, cluthing his head in pain.
"What? I'm hungry!" He pouted, rubbing his head with his good arm."
"Honestly Ed, you ate half of our food just this mourning- how can someone so short have such a huge stomach?" Winry said. Ed glared at her threatenly.
"Why you- GET BACK HERE!" He yelled as Winry started running, pushing past you. You laughed and started running to, not wanting to fall behind.
"Slow down you guys!" Al yelled, struggling to keep up with the large basket. But of course, none of you listened- Winry was too busy running for her life, Ed was too ticked to let her get away, and you...well, you just thought it was all too hilarious. The four of you kept running until you came up to a hill. Panting, you struggled to run up it, only to find that Ed and Winry had stopped at the very top, looking at something.
Looking back at you, Ed motioned for you to come closer. Puzzled, you obeyed, stopping at his side and staring at a large black spot in front of you.
"Welcome home." Ed said softly.
You stood there, next to Ed, just staring at the house. Nature had already started the course of rebuilding itself- there were various overgrown weeds sticking out of the darkened earth. A slow wind picked up, forcing the grass to gently sway in the wind...
"What was it like?" You asked softly. You sensed Ed glance at you, but didn't take your eyes off of the dark earth.
"You mean, what did our house look like?" Ed inquired. You nodded. "Well..." He started, "It was pretty tall, two floors and a basement."
"It kinda looked like my house." Winry interrupted, "With the yellow sides, but their roof was red and the house was skinnier."
"It was actually pretty small compared to the other houses in the area." Said Al, who had finally caught up. "But it worked for us, since our family was small."
"WHO YA CALLIN SMALL!" Ed suddenly yelled. You winced, forgetting that you were standing right next to him.
"Cool it Ed..." You muttered as you dug into your ear with your hand, trying to regain your hearing.
"Don't waste your breath Aka." Winry said, "He hasn't changed in 15 years and I doubt he will now."
"Oh-ho! So you were an annoying pipsqueak as a kid to?" You said, grinning at Ed. He twitched under your gazed, his good hand balled into a fist.
"It wasn't as bad when we were kids." Winry said with a laugh, "Since he didn't stop growing until we were about 7."
"WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?" Cried Ed, grabbing his head, "YOU'RE ALL A BUNCH OF BULLIES!"
"Aww...poor Brother, getting picked on by a bunch of girls." Al said in a teasing voice.
"WHAT? NOT YOU TOO!" Yelled Ed. By this time, you Winry and Al were laughing your asses off.
Ed finally snapped. "THAT'S IT! I, EDWARD ELRIC WILL HUNT EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU DOWN WITH MY BODY AND SOUL!" He yelled, proceeding to chase the three of you in circles. You were so busy laughing that you were having trouble running. Panting between laughs, you began to slow down, giving Ed enough of a lead to tackle you, forcing both of you to fall. Ed sat on your back, holding your wrists behind your back with his good hand.
"Say it." He said evilly.
"No!"
"Say it!" He repeated, twisting your arm a bit.
"NO!"
"SAY IT!"
"F-fine!" You finally gasped. "Y-your...not a midget." Ed sighed, getting off of you.
"Good enough." He grumbled, helping you up. Looking over his shoulder, he called, "Oi, Al! Bring that basket over, I'm starvin here!"
"So what's your story Aka?" Winry asked as she munched on a sandwich. She and Al had packed thousands of them, which was good, because Ed was already on his fifth.
"Me? Well...I grew up in a place called Trezanga." You said, grabbing a peach. (yeah, i know- i'm obsessed with peaches. go write your own fruit story)
"Trezanga? I don't think I've heard of it." Winry said.
"Fit's a preally tracrappy mace." (translation- It's a really crappy place) Ed said between chews.
"Ed!" Winry cried with a horrified look on her face. You grinned and waved a hand at her.
"It's okay Winry, Ed's right- my hometown smells." You said reassuringly.
"Oh. So...why'd you leave? To look for the Philosopher's Stone?"
"Well, not at first...I actually left cause my Dad died." You said, not really wanting to go into detail about you being blamed for the murder.
"I'm sorry, that must have been really hard." Winry said, patting your shoulder. You grinned at her and shrugged.
"Yeah, but I was okay. After all, I had these two to look after me!...Well, at least Al anyway." You quickly dodged as a large apple was thrown at your face from the direction of Ed.
"Sorry Ed, I couldn't have made it without you either." You said, smiling. Ed continued eating, but you saw a hint of a smile on his face.
"Did you go to school?" Winry asked. You shook your head.
"Nah, but my Dad taught me to read and write...and some basic alchemy." You added with a wink. Winry laughed.
"I was wondering if it was these two who taught you. Did I hear you tell my Grandma last night that you can do alchemy without a circle like Ed?" You nodded.
"Yeah, but it's not the same thing. See, my alchemy is kinda...part of my body. And Ed...well, I don't really know his excuse." You finished, looking at him questioningly. But he just ignored you. You sighed and picked up a sandwich, taking a large bite out of it.
"What about you guys?" You asked, "Did you go to school?"
"When we were younger." Al answered, "Most people around here only go to school until they're twelve or so, and a couple only learn to read and write."
"Yeah, I remember when we were in school that there was this one guy who was around 10 and still couldn't read. He was kinda mean." Winry said thoughtfully. Then, she started giggling.
"What's so funny?" You asked.
"Oh nothing, it's just that he was kinda a jerk, and one time Ed and Al used alchemy to tie him to a chair. The teacher was really mad, but the guy was totally blown away." You giggled to, wishing you'd seen it. Ed chuckled as well.
"Heh, I forgot all about that." He said, finally giving the poor victimized food a break. "What was his name again?...Talyor?"
"Tal-yor?" You repeated, "Don't you mean Taylor?"
"No, he spelled it Tal-yor. But, that could of been because he couldn't write well." Al said. Then, turning to Winry, he asked, "Whatever happened to him anyway? Did he ever graduate?" Winry nodded.
"Yeah, Talyor graduated while you two were away with Izumi. I don't know what happened after that."
"Hmph. So that big oaf finally graduated..." Ed said, munching on a sandwich again. He was about to grab another when you poked his hand, sending a spark of lighting at it.
"OW!" He yelled, blowing on his hand. "What was that for?"
"Ed, you've had like a gazillion sandwiches- leave some for the rest of us!" You yelled. Ed grumbled, but let his arm drop.
"Wow Aka, I've never seen Ed let someone refuse him food before. He must really like you!" Winry said teasingly. You and Ed looked away, blushing as Winry and Al giggled.
"Hey Winry, it's almost noon, do you think we should take Aka on the tour now? Al asked. You perked up, grinning.
"Yeah! Let's go!" You said, grabbing the leftover food and stuffing it back in the basket. "We can finish lunch later." You said hurridly, running off. "C'mon!"
"Umm...Aka? We're going this way." Al said, pointing in the opposite direction you were running. Ed and Winry got a sweat-drop as you whirled around and started running in the direction Al was pointing, trying to drag him with you.
"Is she always like this?" Winry asked Ed. He shrugged.
"Just recently."
and that's it for this update! i know, it was kinda short, but don't worry- next one is LONGER and ACTIONY!
what? it's a word!
-zago