Hey, everyone, sorry that it took me so long to update this story. I sometimes have trouble finding inspiration to continue (or I'll get obsessed with writing another story, which in this case is "The Zombie Alchemist", heh). Both situations happened with this one, hehe.
Anyway, hope that you enjoy the story. Please leave me a review and tell me what you think!
Disclaimer: I do not own FullMetal Alchemist. Enough said. I don't need to come up with silly things to say all the time, do I?
Everyone was silent after everything had been spelled out. None of the signs knew what to say, and the humans couldn't speak. The food just sat there getting cold while everyone waited in awkward silence.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. "I'll get the door," said Edward. He got up and walked over to the door. He opened it to find a man standing there, obviously confused.
"Excuse me for intruding," said the man, "But I seem to be lost. Would you be so kind as to help me find my way to…?"
Edward didn't listen to the rest of the man's words. He narrowed his eyes and stared deeply into those of the man before him. "I know you," he said, gritting his teeth.
The man snapped his attention back from his asking for help and gasped. "You are…!"
"DIE!" shouted Edward as he lunged at the man, knocking them both outside. The two toppled over onto the ground. Edward sprang onto the man and thrust a punch at him. The man ducked his head just in time. Edward sprang another punch at him, but the man again ducked.
"Edward, what are you doing?" Winry shouted as she and everyone else came running outdoors. Edward paid no attention, but kept trying to clobber the man, who kept dodging Edward's punches.
Suddenly, from out of nowhere came an arrow that struck Edward in the back. He gripped his back in pain, and then fell over, motionless.
"Edward!" screamed Winry, running over to her wounded friend. Edward's breathing was shallow, and he seemed to be in great pain.
He opened his eyes. "Winry…" he said, before his eyes closed again. Winry was panicking. Who would do this to Ed? Sure, Ed was attacking that man, but he must have had a good reason, right?
A man walked out of the shadows, followed by a woman, carrying a bow and arrows. "Hurry," said the man, "Let's get these two inside before their condition gets worse."
Nobody argued with that. Everyone helped Edward and Edward's victim back into the house, followed by the stranger and the archer. The stranger proceeded to treat the wounds of the two injured people, and he seemed to know exactly what he was doing.
"It happens every time, doesn't it?" muttered the stranger under his breath.
"What happens every time? What's going on? Will Ed be okay?"
"You're just full of questions, aren't you missy?" said the stranger, turning to Winry. "I'll answer your questions soon. Right now, I need you to help me get these two into separate rooms, or they'll fight again when they wake up."
Winry couldn't figure out why Edward would fight again, but then, she couldn't figure out why Ed had fought in the first place, so without asking questions, she helped to move the other man into a separate room.
As soon as the other man was safely in that other room, Winry turned to the stranger and asked, "Who are you, and what do you know about this that we don't?"
"Step outside with me, and I'll show you," said the man.
"Winry and the man stepped outside into the quiet, dark night of the countryside.
"Look up at the sky," said the man, "What do you see?"
"The stars," said Winry, trying to figure out where this was going.
"Good," said the man, "Now look beyond that, and tell me what you see."
Winry throught for a moment, and then said, "I see constellations."
"You're quite perceptive," chuckled the man. "Point out one of the constellations."
Winry pointed to a very bright constellatioin that had three bright stars all lined up in a row. "That's Orion," she said.
"Indeed, it is," said the man, "You're a smart girl."
Winry chuckled. "Not really. Ed, Al, and I used to sit out here for hours some nights just watching the starts and pointing out constellations."
The man smiled. "Then you no doubt realize that the signs of the zodiac are constellations too."
Winry gave him a puzzled expression, so he continued. "The signs of the zodiac are a special group, with special powers, so they'll no doubt tell you that there are only twelve of their kind. In reality, however, they are a lot more of their kind than they like to admit.
"You see, missy, all these various constellations are actually living beings. Each of them manifests themselves in the world as a person. They'll take on a different mind and a different body with each incarnation, naturally, but it's still the same spirit manifesting itself as a person. When you look up into the summer sky and see Scorpio, you are actually looking at Edward's spirit."
"So…you're saying…that Edward is really a group of stars?" asked Winry.
The man chuckled. "Well, it's something like that, but his physical body is very real too, and his feelings towards you are genuine. Looking up at these stars, he might seem distant to you, even though he can't be seen this time of year, but his heart genuinely cares about you."
This was a lot to take in all at once. In one night, she had not only learned that Ed and Al weren't human, but now that they were actually manifestations of the stars. Ed and Al probably didn't even know that themselves yet. Could she handle it?
Winry turned back to the man. "How do you know all this…and why did Ed fight with that guy without warning?"
The man sighed. "That battle has been going on for millennia, though I can't say what it started over. That man that Edward attacked is Orion, and for some reason, Scorpio hates Orion. He actually killed him once."
"Ed killed a man?" asked Winry, shocked beyond belief.
The man shook his head, chuckling. "No, Ed didn't kill him, Scorpio did. True, Scorpio is Ed, but Ed isn't Scorpio. Scorpio is simply manifesting as Edward in this incarnation, but Edward has no memory of that battle."
"Then why did he attack Orion?"
"Edward's spirit can overpower his mind if it deems necessary. While Edward would never attack someone like he did tonight, Scorpio certainly would, so it was Scorpio that was attacking Orion, not Edward."
"Poor Ed," said Winry, "He probably felt like he was being possessed right then."
"He probably did, and he'll no doubt have a lot of questions when he wakes up." The man turned to go back inside the house, but Winry called out to him.
"Wait, how do you know all this, anyway? Who are you?"
The man smiled. "I am Ophiuchus. Some call me the thirteenth sign, even though I'm not technically a member of the zodiac. My job is to protect Orion and to keep and eye on Scorpio." With that, he turned and went back into the house.
Winry stayed outside and continued to gaze at the stars. All these constellations were really people? Or rather, they were spirits that manifested themselves as people. She had always felt close to the stars, but had never known why. Now she understood. He two best friends were up there.
A shiver ran through her spine. It was really strange to think about things like that. This was really new and weird to her, but quite intriguing as well. She wondered how Ed and Al were going to take this new information.
She sighed. This day had indeed been odd, but it was a day she'd never forget. Taking one last look at the starry heavens, she turned and walked into the house.
Hope that you enjoyed the chapter. Now, please leave me a review, and I'll be sure to update soon!