Hello lovelies! So, I'm actually really excited about some of the material this covers - you'll get to learn a little more about Lissa's backstory and her upbringing in Central. Eventually her entire past will be revealed (I don't like leaving too much unanswered!) but it's definitely a bit of a trickle... So I'm looking forward to getting some of that out there. I hope you enjoy!


"Seriously, out of everybody in the entire military, you have to think he's the best," Ed hissed under his breath, glaring at Lissa like the whole thing was her fault.

She just rolled her eyes at him. "Just because you think he's overbearing. Alex is one of the best people I've ever met—so be nice or I'll tell him you need lots and lots of hugging or you'll be severely depressed. And he'd believe me, you know he would."

Ed sneered. "You're evil, Lissa."

"Be nice to me too. I have five stitches in my stomach, and I just leapt in front of a crazy serial killer to save you." Lissa huffed and crossed her arms, a bit sore at him—he'd been awkward about her actions the night before, which meant he hadn't actually thanked her or scarcely acknowledged what she'd done at all. She hadn't done it to get attention, that would be stupid and horrible of her…but it still rubbed her the wrong way that he'd been so odd about it.

"Are you all right?" he asked quietly, softening immediately. "I—I'm sorry, Lissa. I'm not trying to treat you badly or anything…"

She felt guilty about that, for making him feel bad when she knew he wasn't doing anything intentionally. Really, she knew him better than that. "No, Ed, you aren't… I just…" Lissa looked away from him a moment, ashamed. "I was afraid you'd be angry with me, that's all. I know it was reckless of me, but I couldn't…" Her breath caught. "I couldn't let him do that to you."

Ed smiled that crooked smile of his, and she blinked at him in surprise. He…wasn't angry? "It was reckless… But… You might've saved my life last night. So… Thank you." Then he pointed at her and narrowed his eyes. "Don't ever do it again, got it? I mean it. I don't want you throwing your life away like that. You already do enough for me, seriously, and that sort of thing is just…" He took her hand and pulled her in closer, shaking his head faintly. "I couldn't live with myself, okay? If something happened to you like that. Be careful, Liss."

"I can't promise that," she told him honestly. "I can promise to be careful, but… I'd still do it again, Ed. And I can't change it—that's just how I feel, it's just a fact of how my mind works. I care about you." Lissa grinned and pulled him towards the train, knowing Alex would come looking if they were gone too long. "But, Al is gonna kick your ass all the way to Drachma if you do something like that again, so it won't be an issue, right?"

He rolled his eyes and let her drag him along. "Yeah, yeah. Fair. Don't rip your stitches, though!"

They caught up with Alex beside the door to the train, and hurried to find seats—which wasn't such an issue, with people pausing every few seconds to gawk up at the Major in pure awe. It was just a matter of winding their way through the onlookers until they found an empty couple benches and sat down there.

Lissa stretched out on her side, leaning her head into the window and smirking across at Ed, who had gotten roped into sitting beside Alex. Apparently, she deserved the whole side on account of the stitches in her abdomen. She wasn't going to argue that.

Someone knocked on the glass, and Ed raised up on his knees to slide a panel of the window open and stick his head out. Lissa sat up too, surprised to see Lieutenant Colonel Hughes standing outside their carriage. She got back to her feet and leaned into the window to join in the conversation, unwilling to be left out.

"Hey," Hughes greeted brightly.

Edward gave him a baffled look. "Lieutenant Colonel?"

Hughes flashed a smile. "The folks at the Eastern Command Center were a bit too busy to make it down here today, so I came to see you off instead."

"That's great… But would you mind telling me what the Major's doing here?" Ed griped.

"For protection," Hughes explained bluntly, raising an eyebrow. "What would happen if Scar came after you again? You two are in no shape for a fight now, Ed. The Major's here to help. Just try to, eh…grin and bear it."

Alex crossed his arms rather primly. "Children can be so stubborn," he lamented.

Ed turned and glowered at him. "Hey, shut up! I'm no child!"

"Play nice," Lissa told him sharply, nudging her elbow into his right side. It was easier without his automail getting in the way, and it was a sensitive place for him, so she was going to take full advantage of the opportunity.

Rubbing at his side, Ed muttered, "Anyway… Are you sure Al made it on board? I didn't see you put him on."

"Of course," Alex told him, looking surprised. Then he rubbed his chin thoughtfully, apparently deciding to offer up more information. "I thought he might get lonely without a little company, so I placed him among the sheep."

Ed's jaw dropped, and Lissa pressed her hands over her mouth to keep from bursting out laughing. Poor Alphonse! "My brother isn't some kind of farm animal!" Ed almost shrieked, seething with anger.

The train's whistle blew, and Hughes stepped back from the window. "Oh, sounds like it's time. Okay, you kids have a safe trip. Stop in and give me a shout the next time you make it to Central!"

He snapped off a salute, which Ed was forced to return left-handed—usually a sign of disrespect, but forgivable in this case—and even Lissa saluted back. She liked Hughes well enough to show him that kind of respect, even though she wasn't technically in the military herself. She'd never do that for Mustang, of course.

The train pulled out of the station, and Lissa settled back in, stretching her legs across the seat and leaning her head back. It was weird, not having Al there. Maybe she'd try to sneak back to the livestock car later and check in on him.

"Hey, Ed…" Lissa cut herself off, though, realizing he'd already fallen asleep with his head against the window. "Oops," she laughed.

Alex gave her a curious look. "Is something the matter, Lissa?"

"Oh, no. I was gonna ask him if he wanted to try and go visit Alphonse, but it's better to let him sleep." She waved her hand passively. "He barely slept at all last night. I should know, the dorms were full with everyone from Central being here to look for Scar, so we ended up sharing a queen-size at the hotel. He was tossing and turning all night."

Sharing a bed was a rare thing, but it did happen when they had no other options. At first, Lissa and Ed had found it awkward, but after a few times they stopped worrying so much. It wasn't too different from sleeping in the same room, and it was purely out of necessity anyway, so what did it matter? Besides, she'd been glad for it the night before, appreciating just having both boys close to her after what had happened. Lissa couldn't bear to lose them.

"Hm. I see." His gaze turned more intense, a look that might've made anyone else quail under it—but Lissa knew it wasn't threatening. "That was a very brave thing you did, last night. Putting yourself in harm's way to protect him. Reckless, but no less brave for it. What compelled you to do such a thing?"

Lissa shut her eyes and sighed, turning the question over in her head. "I just…couldn't stand there and watch Scar kill him. A while back…Al and I promised each other that we'd look after Ed, since he doesn't really look after himself. So I guess that was part of it. But more than that… He'd just…given up, he was bargaining to save my life and Alphonse's, and it about broke my heart that he put his own life so far down the list. I think some part of me wanted to prove that he was worth more than that. Not consciously at the time, but still…"

"I read the reports," Alex admitted, bowing his head. "It was…a very selfless thing, to step into the path of certain death the way you did. Edward Elric must be very important to you indeed, to inspire such behavior. Though I would prefer you look after yourself better…it's good to see you so passionate about something more than a way out."

She twisted her fingers into her jacket and nodded. Alex Armstrong was one of the few people she felt she could be truly honest with—all starting eight years ago, when she'd first come to Central. He knew damn well why she'd originally been so intent on taking her exams early, though he'd never ratted her out. "He is," she agreed, not bothering to hide it. "Al was pretty angry about it… But that's just how he shows care, honestly. I don't think Ed even knew how to handle it. Which is surprising, I mean, I've been traveling with them for three years and they're still surprised I care about them?"

He cracked a faint smile. "Those boys hardly believe anyone cares for them, I'm afraid. They don't see that sort of thing in others very often, and from what I understand, they've suffered enough to have good reason to wonder. I can't say I know the details… But I know enough to be very grateful you were able to join them on their journey."

"I'm just grateful to have them," she murmured.

Alex settled back in his seat and pulled out a book, clearly sensing she was finished with the conversation. That was another thing she liked about him—as long as you were being open and honest, he'd never press past your limit. It was a refreshing change. "Why don't you rest as well, Lissa?" he suggested. "It will be some time before we arrive in Resembool, and I'm sure you need it, after what you endured."

She didn't think she could sleep—but she nodded her agreement anyway, knowing better than to argue with that tone. Lissa knew that particular tone very well.

The drop from the window was taller than she was, but she didn't care. Lissa jumped right out anyway, using a wobbly burst of alchemy to catch her fall and keep her from breaking her ankles. One night in this place was too much. She'd go find somebody else to take care of her, since the stupid military wanted to put her in barracks and tried to make her wash off her transmutation circles… Or maybe she'd just stay all by herself.

"Anything's better than here," seven-year-old Lissa Caito whispered, glaring tearfully up at the institution looming behind her.

She left the building behind and raced straight for the barbed-wire fence on the far end of the yard. Just for this, she'd stolen a pen and scrawled transmutation circles on her arms and hands, everything she could think of—so she'd be able to get through that stupid fence and get out. She just knew it.

Lissa reached the fence and pressed her hands on it, calling up the blue electricity and transmuting a hole in the fence by forcing the metal to bend open for her.

'Not electricity,' she reminded herself. 'Daddy called it transmutation energy.'

"And just where do you think you're going, hm?"

She shrieked as an enormous hand caught the back of her shirt and lifted her clear off the ground, before she could even try to run away. Lissa's bottom lip wobbled with tears as she saw the man who had caught her—a military guard, the biggest person she'd ever seen, with huge muscles and intense blue eyes. Was he gonna kill her? People said the military was mean, but killing a little girl…

Instead of killing her, though, the giant man just tucked her under his arm and began striding off, towards the gate of the compound.

Lissa scowled up at him. Was he kidnapping her? "Hey, put me down!" She twisted her hands together hard, the only way she knew how to use her alchemy without a surface, and forced the air around her to compress and then expand, trying to free herself. To her surprise, it actually worked, though she'd never used alchemy that way before. She hit the ground and pushed up before she even could breathe, taking of running in the opposite direction.

With a crackle of blue energy, a mountain of transmuted rocks sprang up in front of her. Lissa skidded to a halt, turning in utter shock to see the guard who had caught her lifting his fist from the ground. "Y-you're an alchemist," she realized.

He inclined his head. "Indeed. I am the Strong-Arm Alchemist, Major Alex Louis Armstrong. Now." Major Armstrong gave her an intense look. "You have spirit, little one, but you'd be no match for me. I suggest you concede defeat and accompany me—there's no shame in backing out of a fight you cannot win."

Lissa eyed him suspiciously. She still didn't like this. And he was a state alchemist… So what was he doing guarding the facility like this? The big-name state alchemists never got stuck with guard duty, they were all busy with the war in Ishval. "Go with you where?" she demanded.

Beneath his mustache, she saw him smile. "Do you think I would bring you to harm?"

"No," she admitted. "But I don't know you, either. You'll probably just drag me back to the institution for punishment."

"You would be wrong in your assumption," he told her, offering one of his giant hands for her to take. "Come. It seems to me you're rather in need of a good late-night stroll through the city—and who am I to deny the wishes of a young girl, hm?"

Lissa swallowed hard. She could try to escape him… But he'd been way faster than she thought a person his size could be, and as much as she wanted to fight, she knew she'd lose against a state alchemist. This guy was stronger than the state alchemist who'd brought her in, too, and she'd lost against him in Rayerk. As much as she hated to admit it…she didn't see many other choices here, except to go with Major Armstrong and see what he wanted.

"Okay," she agreed reluctantly, sticking her hand into his.

Major Armstrong led her out of the compound, to her confusion, and down a few darker streets before they emerged onto a surprisingly busy little market street. From there he took Lissa to a quaint bakery just around the corner—and soon enough she was sitting in a chair so tall her feet didn't touch the ground, with a whole bag of chocolate chip cookies in her lap.

"What is your name, little one?" he asked her curiously. She realized it was odd he hadn't wondered before. He should've asked, to know who was supposed to be punished for running away like that.

"Lissa Caito," she told him. She hated her real first name. "Why are you being so nice to me?" she asked the Major, peering at him over her bag of cookies.

He regarded her very calmly, not offended by the question. "Why shouldn't I be? I know why children come to that institution. I assumed…your parents passed away, and quite recently."

Lissa nodded slowly. "Yeah. They did."

"I'm sorry for your loss."

She scowled at the tabletop. "Everyone says that, like they think I should be going around crying like a little baby. But I'm not. I won't cry."

He raised an eyebrow. "And why not? There's no shame in crying when you feel sad."

"But I'm not sad," she insisted. "I'm angry. That stupid war killed them. And now because they're gone, I had to leave my home and come all the way here to stupid Central, and sleep in a room with people I've never even met before. I hate it here."

"And you blame your parents for it?" he asked softly. "Tell me… Do you believe they left you on purpose? That they intended to leave you alone?"

She crumpled the top of the bag in her hands, watching the transmutation circles on her skin shift with the movement. "I dunno. They must have known it might happen, the soldiers told me so. But we stayed in Rayerk anyway." Lissa kicked her feet, trying to figure out what was going on in her head. So much had happened since those soldiers in the hospital told her that her parents were gone. Lissa only remembered a little from before that—she remembered being a little kid, her childhood in Rayerk, but she had all these…gaps, bits that didn't make any sense. The doctors said she'd been injured when her town was attacked, and her parents were killed then…but Lissa didn't remember it. Everything felt so far away from her. "I don't even remember what happened," she admitted. "I keep thinking…maybe if I go home, I'll still find them… Or that…maybe there's a way to…to fix things…" She looked up at the Major like he had all the answers. "Is that horrible of me? I know it's supposed to be so nice that the state is letting me live here, but…I don't want to be here. I just wanna go home."

Major Armstrong reached across the table and gently disentangled her hands from the top of the bag. "No, Miss Lissa. It isn't horrible of you. It's normal to consider all kinds of things, even desperate, maybe horrible things, when you're hurting. It doesn't make you a bad person. It just makes you human. You are a young girl who misses your parents—I would be surprised if you hadn't considered every possibility. I'm not surprised you tried to run away, either. But where would you go?"

Lissa shrugged. "Home? To Rayerk."

"And what would be waiting for you there?" he asked her softly. "That area was nearly destroyed during the war. It's still tenuous and unsafe, even for soldiers in the region, let alone a girl as young as yourself."

"But I'm an alchemist," she protested. "I'm really good, too, that's why they made me come here. I do intangibles, and they said that's really special—so I could do it. I'd be okay."

The Major chuckled softly, amused. "You're quite a fighter, aren't you, Lissa?" He shook his head faintly. "Even the most accomplished alchemist would be in danger. I understand that you do not wish to be here… But I would suggest you stay, at least for now. You're being offered a place to stay, and lessons to improve your skills. Make use of the tools you've been handed and make yourself stronger, a better alchemist. Learn all you can. But never forget why you're here, you understand me? Don't ever lose sight of what brought you here."

Lissa stared up at him, stunned. Adults didn't talk to her like that—they always talked down to her, like she was a little kid who needed to be babied. But Major Armstrong was being honest with her. "Thank you," she murmured. "I—I'll try to do that."

"Good. And if you work hard…" He winked at her. "Perhaps one day you'll even be a match for me."

Lissa giggled and bit into another cookie. "I'd have to be pretty good. You're scary, Major Armstrong. Not in a bad way. In a—punching-bad-guys kind of way." She grinned at him, aware now that he was big and scary in size only, but deep down, he was a very kind person. He had to be, to treat her like this. "That's the kind of scary I wanna be."

Major Armstrong laughed, full and loud. "I believe you'll manage that, Lissa Caito. I really do."

The train rolled to a stop at a small, quaint little station just a couple stops from Resembool. Lissa only vaguely remembered it from the time she'd come this way before—she'd been too focused on being cross with Colonel Mustang and trying to figure out why he'd dragged her all the way past East City for what she thought was a stupid errand.

I had no idea I'd meet my best friends, she mused, thinking back to that night. It was the first time she'd leapt in to protect Edward—but not the last.

Across from her, the boy in question was stirring, cracking a big yawn and stretching his arms over his head as he peered out the window. "Mh, where are we?" he asked sleepily. "Are we in Resembool yet?"

"Morning," Lissa teased. "No, not yet. We're a couple stops up still."

Ed grinned at her. "Oh, good. More sleep." He was just tilting his head back to the window when suddenly Alex squished him into the wall, leaving Ed pinned and flailing as he stuck his head out the window to stare at a man who had just walked by.

"Dr. Marcoh! Dr. Marcoh, that is you, isn't it? It's me! Alex Louis Armstrong, from Central!" he yelled.

Lissa frowned as she caught a glimpse of the man, turning with a petrified look on his face—before he ducked away and ran straight off the platform, clearly more than just caught off guard. "That's weird," she mused, frowning. "Why'd he run away?"

Freed from the wall, Ed peered up at Armstrong curiously. "Friend of yours?"

"He's from Central," Alex explained. "A talented state alchemist. He was researching into possible medical applications of alchemy. But after the Ishvalan Civil War, he went missing—just disappeared."

Ed looked at Lissa in surprise. "You thinking what I'm thinking?"

She nodded. "Definitely."

They took off running, leaving Alex standing baffled in the aisle. "Let's go, Major!" Ed called back. "A guy like this doctor might know some useful things about bio-alchemy."

"We need to get Al, too," Lissa pointed out. "Alex, would you mind grabbing him?"

"Alex," Ed mocked, wrinkling his nose while they waited on the platform. "And you call Lieutenant Hawkeye Riza. I can't decide if it's disrespectful or impressive."

Lissa tugged his braid just to mess with him. "I mean, I did grow up in Central," she pointed out wryly. "I've known most of these guys since I was seven, so it's kind of hard to just use ranks or surnames after a while. I'm not even technically military yet. I don't know all of them that well—but I've known Alex since I was seven, and Riza since I was…I think eight, maybe. Though it took me ages to get the courage to call her that. She's scary when she wants to be."

"Yeah… I feel like she might shoot me if I called her that," he admitted, shuddering. "Oh, hey, there he is. Al!" Ed hurried off down the platform to rejoin his brother, and Lissa just grinned and followed him, hands in her pockets absently.

Ed groaned when he reached Al, pinched his nose, and muttered, "Ew, Al. You reek of sheep."

"I didn't ask to get stuck with the sheep, it's not my fault!" Al protested.

A bit gingerly, Ed patted him atop his head, like he was afraid the strong livestock smell would cling to his glove. "Ugh, well…at least the Major's gotta carry you, not me."

"Why are we stopping here anyway?" Alphonse asked, as Alex hefted the box he'd been packed in onto his shoulder. "I thought we were going straight to Resembool."

"Major Armstrong spotted this state alchemist who was researching medical applications of alchemy," Ed explained, leading the charge away from the station. "He ran off somewhere, so we're gonna look around and see if we can't track him down. He's some old guy, so he couldn't have gotten too far."

Despite Ed's assertion, though, they couldn't find this Dr. Marcoh anywhere. Alex had drawn a picture in his notebook, which he was showing to any villager they came across—a stunningly good portrait, actually, which was attributed to a talent which had been passed down through the Armstrong family for generations—but it didn't get them very far. Nobody knew his name at all, not even a single person recognized the name Marcoh.

Finally, though, one man looked at the portrait and nodded an affirmative. "I don't know any Dr. Marcoh, but that man looks like Dr. Mauro to me."

"Mauro?" Alex repeated thoughtfully.

The man nodded. "Yeah, he's great. All our local doctors were drafted to help on the battlefields during the civil war. Then Dr. Mauro came here, he's been a real lifesaver."

Catching the conversation, a passing couple walked up and joined in. "He'll see any patient and he never gives up on anybody," the guy added. "We're lucky he's here."

The woman on his arm smiled and nodded her agreement. "You'll see this big, bright flash of red light—and then you're cured, just like that!"

Lissa gave Ed a pointed look. "A flash of red light?" she murmured, while Alex got the details of where exactly this Dr. Mauro kept his business. "And then instant healing? I don't wanna get ahead of ourselves, but that really sounds like…"

"Cornello," he finished, golden eyes bright with excitement. "We have to check this out."

The address they got for Dr. Mauro wasn't far, thankfully. It turned out to be a few streets over, a squared-off white building with ivy creeping up the front, and a staircase leading up to the front door. Ed was the first up the stairs, though Lissa chased him down and caught his wrist before he could knock. "Hey, why'd you stop me?" he demanded, frowning at her.

She rolled her eyes. "Dummy. You're down one arm so you can't use alchemy. I might still be injured, but at least I can use my alchemy."

Ed grumbled under his breath, but stood aside anyway.

Lissa put on her best I'm-being-pleasant-and-dealing-with-adults face, and knocked smartly on the door. Nobody answered, so she just grabbed the handle and opened it. They needed information, after all. "Dr. Mauro? Hell…o?"

She froze where she stood, halfway through the door, when a gun suddenly appeared right in front of her face.

There was the faintest disturbance in the air as Dr. Marcoh—it had to be him—clenched his muscles and pulled the trigger. Lissa reacted as she felt it, bringing both hands up and clenching them down on the pistol in a flurry of blue energy. Air impacted inside the barrel and the bullet lodged there, stuck in place. When the hammer landed, the gun itself exploded, and Lissa jumped back as the doctor staggered away, wincing at the sting on her palms.

"Liss!" Ed darted in and yanked Lissa back, Armstrong moving in behind him. But Lissa was more focused on her gloves, both of which had torn on the palms pretty badly. She glared over at the stunned doctor, yanking them off and brandishing them at him irritably. "You were gonna shoot me?" she demanded. "What the hell's your problem?"

Dr. Marcoh pressed against the far wall, already fumbling in the nearest drawer for what she assumed was another weapon. "Tell me what you're doing here!" he yelled, the air thick with the salt of his fear. "Have you come to take me back?!"

"Please, Doctor, calm down," Alex asked of him, maybe unaware of how intimidating he was, filling the doorway like that.

"I don't ever want to go back!" the doctor begged. "Anything but that!"

Ed glared at him, still keeping his one good arm in front of Lissa like he'd protect her. Sweet, but unnecessary. "Are you even listening to us? That's not why we're here!"

Something darker came over Dr. Marcoh's face. "So you're here to silence me, then?"

"No! It's nothing like that!" Ed protested.

But Dr. Marcoh just wasn't listening anymore. "I won't be tricked by you!" he yelled, though his voice trembled.

Apparently, after that, Alex had heard enough. He stepped forward, gave a thrust of his shoulder—and flung poor Alphonse into Dr. Marcoh, knocking the man flat on his back. "I'll ask you one more time, please calm down!"

"Alphonse!" Ed yelped, rushing forward to check on his brother.

Lissa shot Alex a dry look. "Did you have to throw Al? I mean, wasn't there a better way to handle this guy?"

Alex shrugged primly. "It seemed prudent at the time."

She knew better than to argue, so she just rolled her eyes and joined Ed, where he was still freaking out about Al. "He's fine, Ed," she laughed, resting a hand atop Al's helmet. "Isn't that right, Alphonse?"

"As long as I don't get thrown again…"

Lissa bent and kissed the top of his head. "I'll do my best, promise."

Dr. Marcoh sat up shakily and eyed them all, still looking terrified. "Y-you… Why aren't you arresting me?" he asked. "Or killing me?"

"We told you," Ed griped. "We're not here for any of that stuff. Jeez, old man."

Lissa leaned into the side of Al's crate and examined her gloves, considering the material that was left. It seemed like she hadn't lost much, as far as she could tell, so she pressed them between her hands and pieced them back together, lighting up the room with blue energy. The action drew Dr. Marcoh's eyes to her, and she noted his curiosity as she slipped the right one back on. "Yeah, I have transmutation circles tattooed on my hands," she told him, and pulled the left glove on. "That's why I wear these. Otherwise people stare, or they ask me to transmute things for them."

He nodded slowly, still staring at her, right into her eyes. It was disconcerting. "Your eyes… They look…very familiar to me, somehow… What is your name, young lady?"

"Er…" She glanced sideways at Ed, wanting to see that he was just as baffled as she felt. And sure enough, she saw that confusion reflected in his gold eyes. "I don't see how, I've never met you before… But… My name is Lissa Caito."

Dr. Marcoh's eyes widened. "Caito? Your last name is Caito?"

"Um, yes?" Lissa finally tuned into the buzzing around her ears and sank into it, for just a moment, feeling…moss…like old moss and mud deep in the pit of her stomach… Was that guilt? "I'm Lissandra Caito. Why? What does that mean to you, Doctor?"

He pushed up onto his elbows and sighed, raking a hand through his hair. "I knew your parents… Richard and Miranda Caito… They…they were colleagues of mine."

Lissa's whole world ground to a halt. "You…knew them?" she whispered.

"Yes, I did. Though I wasn't…actually aware they had a daughter."

The admission made her chest ache with a sudden rush of sorrow. Her parents hadn't even mentioned her to their colleagues. Just from her memories of them leaving her behind she'd known she didn't matter as much as a child should have, to normal parents, but this… She'd never imagined this. For someone who knew her parents by their first names to have had no idea she even existed? What did that mean?

Dr. Marcoh regarded her a moment longer, before hanging his head and relenting. "All right. I'll tell you everything. Just please…don't take me back to Central."

Half an hour later, Dr. Marcoh had explained how he arrived in this little town—how he fled the military after getting in too deep and regretting what he'd done, regretting what he'd been involved in, out of fear for retribution or his research being used in the wrong way. He'd told them everything…except about Lissa's parents. And that was her biggest concern. This was the first person she'd met who actually knew them.

"I see now why you ran when I called out to you," Alex mused thoughtfully. "And, if the rumors I've heard can be believed…when you disappeared, you took top secret research materials with you as well."

Dr. Marcoh nodded. "I couldn't handle it anymore. Order or no order, to have to dirty my hands researching that thing was too much…"

Ed glanced at Lissa for just a split second. "What thing is that?" he questioned.

But Dr. Marcoh didn't answer immediately. His gaze turned distant, that moss-mud sickly press of guilt driving into Lissa's abdomen as his mind clearly ventured somewhere else. "It took so many lives," he murmured. "During the Ishvalan Civil War, so many innocents died because of it… I could spend my whole life trying and still never atone for the things I've done. But I had to do something. So I came here to be a doctor, to save lives instead of taking them."

He still won't tell us. What could possibly be so horrible that he can hardly stand to voice it?

"Doctor, what exactly was it you were ordered to do research on?" Alex pressed, leaning in over the tabletop. "What thing?"

"The Philosopher's Stone."

Ed's hand shot out underneath the table and grabbed onto Lissa's, hard, so tight she almost winced. But she didn't blame him. Dr. Marcoh had been doing serious, legitimate research on the very thing Ed and Al were searching for, the object they believed could get them their bodies back. Lissa hoped, so desperately, that this doctor could be the answer.

"The top-secret materials I took were my research documents…and the stone itself," Dr. Marcoh finished gravely.

At his pronouncement, Ed shot up from the table, banging his left hand down atop it and shouting, "Do you mean you still have it?! It's here?!"

Wordlessly, Dr. Marco reached into his jacket and pulled out a small glass vial. Lissa's pulse pounded in her ears. The vial was half-full of a ruby-red substance, a liquid, yet…she could feel it, like what she'd sensed from Cornello's ring in Liore. Like blood, like a slimy film all over her body, sinking into quicksand… She had no idea why it felt so wrong, but it didn't matter. It wasn't like she understood the strange feelings she got anyway.

"How can that be the stone?" Ed asked, staring at it with wide eyes. "It's a liquid."

As they watched, Dr. Marcoh uncorked the vial and tipped the contents out over the table. When the red liquid landed, it coalesced into a single ball, holding together by some unseen force. "The Sage's Stone… The Grand Elixir… The Celestial Stone… The Red Tincture… The Fifth Element. Just as the Philosopher's Stone is called by many names, so can it take on many forms."

Ed stuck out his hand and poked at the stone, watching the surface depress and spring back, the whole form sort of…jiggling a bit at the motion. It truly did hold its shape without a container.

"It is not necessarily a stone," the doctor continued, sighing. At least he was answering their questions now. "This is an incomplete product, however. There's no way to know when it will reach its limit and become unusable."

"Incomplete," Lissa repeated thoughtfully. "So incomplete Philosopher's Stones burn out… But you said it'll become unusable, not that it can't be used now. Which means it's still powerful like this."

"Exactly. And I bet stones like this demonstrated plenty of power during the Ishvalan Civil War, right?" Ed's voice was careful, his excitement held on a tight leash, but she could sense it anyway. "It's just like the stone that false priest had in Liore. It was incomplete, but it still amplified his powers considerably. You were right, Liss. If imitation stones this powerful can be produced…then the real one must have been created somewhere."

Lissa flinched in alarm when Ed slammed his palm down on the table again, staring across at the doctor with a fierce look in his eyes. She knew that look, when his eyes turned to liquid gold and his shoulders took on that determined set… Oh no…

"Please, Dr. Marcoh, we need access to your research materials," Ed all but demanded.

Dr. Marcoh looked across at Alex uncertainly. "Major…who exactly are these two?" he asked wearily.

"Lissa Caito is a highly accomplished alchemist with special talents in the field of intangible materials. And Edward Elric…" Alex's gaze darkened. "Is a state alchemist."

"What?!" Dr. Marcoh reared back in shock. "But they're just children!" He pinched the bridge of his nose, clearly distressed. "After the war…there were many state alchemists who turned in their certifications because they refused to serve as human weapons anymore. And now…children…"

"You think I don't know what I signed up for?!" Ed demanded harshly. "You think we don't know exactly what this is?" He grabbed the empty sleeve on his right side and glared across at the doctor. "I know what I'm doing. But I don't have any choice. If this is a mistake, then it's a mistake I have to make. There is no other way."

The doctor stared at him, seeming half horrified and half depressed at it all. "No other way to do what?"

Ed fell silent then, his jaw tense, unable to form the damning words. So, seeing no other options, Lissa spoke up for him. "To get their bodies back," she explained lowly, glancing at Ed as she voiced it to ensure he wasn't upset with her. But his gaze never faltered. "His and his brother's."

"His brother's body too?" Dr. Marcoh asked, not catching it yet.

Lissa just nodded. "Ed's right arm and left leg are automail, though the arm's out of commission right now. And Al…" She reached out and touched his armored head gently. "He lost his entire body."

Dr. Marcoh rose from the table and approached Al with clear trepidation, and Lissa knew, just from the look on his face, that he'd put it together. "I see," he murmured. "So…you've committed the taboo." He peered down at Al, who stared up at him with clear defiance. "Amazing… The ability to transmute a specific person's soul like this is very rare. Perhaps… Perhaps one as talented as you would be able to produce a complete Philosopher's Stone."

Ed grinned tightly at Lissa. "So-"

"But I can't show you my research," the doctor told him, almost apologetically.

"Why not?!" Edward demanded.

Dr. Marcoh turned away from Al and shook his head, his shoulders slumping. "You must not seek after the stone."

Ed tightened his fingers on the table, glaring at him like this was a personal affront. "Not even if it's to get our bodies back?"

"Never!" Dr. Marcoh shouted suddenly, startling them all as he whipped around towards them, his face contorted in some kind of internal agony. "This is the devil's research. If you chase the stone, you will go through hell!"

"I've already been through hell!" Ed snarled, shoving up from the table and flinging his arm wide.

Lissa jumped up beside him and caught his sleeve, tugging his arm back down and placing herself between him and the doctor. "Ed, calm down," she whispered. She genuinely thought he might go after Dr. Marcoh, just for a moment, overcome by his own desperation—not for himself but for Alphonse, to get his brother's body back. Ed would do anything for that purpose.

"Please," Dr. Marcoh begged softly. "Please, just leave."

Ed stood there a moment, his body pressed into Lissa's side as though he'd push past her—but then he gritted his teeth and nodded, just once. "Fine. I'm sorry to have disturbed you." He turned and stormed out the door, leaving Alex to pick up Al, while Lissa stood uncertainly, wondering who exactly to focus on. This couldn't have been easy on Al either, but Ed was in some kind of poor mental state too… Sometimes it was hard looking after the boys, when they reacted so differently to these things.

"Miss Caito…"

She paused at the door, looking back at Dr. Marcoh in surprise. "Yes?"

"I hope you find a better path than your parents," he told her quietly, looking impossibly sad. "I heard what happened to them… I'm so sorry for your loss."

Lissa shrugged it off. "I don't remember a lot from before they passed, but, thank you anyway."

Unwilling to linger there anymore, Lissa hurried out then, closing the door behind her and chasing Ed down the street. She didn't think he needed somebody to talk him down just then—sometimes he needed to stew in his own rage until logic found its way back in. So she just walked beside him, hands in her pockets, offering silent companionship until he needed her.