We Will Become Silhouettes
SilentLuminosity: Here we are complete with a chapter 2. And thank you to all my reviewers! –tosses all amounts of 'luff' at- Please note that I still am without a Beta (though I may have a close friend take the job x3), and there may be a few-cough-many-cough cough- grammatical errors such as the one I just made that spell check caught for me x3. Remember, Reviews are good, flames are bad and critiquing is wanted. I would also like to note that yes this does not follow the original story line. And to support all of those that are a bit wobbly on this story…Yes there is a plot. Trust me on that one. x3
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Fullmetal Alchemist cast, Story, Lands and such like. I do however own several of the characters (mainly villains x3). Song titles and Lyrics are copyright to their respective owners. Plot in this story however (the parts not meshed with the fullmetal plot) is mine. Yet all of this pale in the face of law…Don't sue me Sweet Rolls for you 3
And note that this is a shonen-ai fic, if you do not like this subject matter please; 1. Save ATP, don't type me a very long flame saying how much you hate this story's subject matter even though it would be your fault for not reading this note. 2. Leave now, or give the story a try. Just don't flame because you hated it for that would be pointless, and I will most likely post it in the next story's 'author's notes' and poke a bit of fun at it 3. But seriously, please don't flame.
Now, My thanks to the oh-so-lovable reviewers
BlackMercifulFaerie – Thank you oh so much for reviewing. I know, I know; the grammatical errors… I'll get a beta soon. And of course shall I continue.
Roy-Fan-33 – I'm sorry for the huge amount of errors. I'm going to push my friend into the role of beta. I did read over it after you reviewed and changed a few things, but I must say that it is very hard to notice errors in the story I have written. I'm sure many know this feeling. I'm happy that I was able to put the scene in your head; this makes me feel better about myself in some odd manner. But thank you for being honest. Harsh yes, but honest none the less and I will take this to heart. Thank you for the review and I hope you enjoy the story. Sweet rolls for you!
Seth-the-lonely-soul – Thank you :D
Rockpaperscissor – Hope you enjoyed it.
Darkraven89 – Classic? I assume so. Cliché at its best x3. Oh and Thanks 3
Kameeko – Oooh look this reviewer vibrates! I'm glad you like it so much. Here you go x3
Save The Green Planet! – Thank you -hands over a sweet roll- enjoy!
KamauFox – Thank you oh so much. As for the misspelled words, I'll keep my eye out so that I may catch more.
Maidencross39 – Here we go!
TruthOfSelf – Aren't they?
Lurkinshdws – thanks.
On with the story!
in this picture stands a man,
Far away, alone and distant
Chapter 2 Cast Me Free
Edward Elric, in short was not a happy camper. He sat at the small table that occupied an area near the open window. The apartment Alphonse and He shared seemed rather tense at this certain point in time.
Never in his life had he been so embarrassed. To Ed, that Bastard Colonel was guilty as he would ever be. He dropped his legs atop the table, leaning back in his chair fuming none too silently. Occasionally he would let out an annoyed grumble at how much he disliked the Colonel. Not only did he hate the Colonel but now he had to go on a mission with the bloody bastard.
Grumbling even more than Edward normally did, the alchemist had succeeded in pulling several strands of hair from his head in attempt to will, or better yet force the oncoming headache away. It was just not his day. The teen reached over into the box of sweet buns, quite intent on stuffing his face until he calmed down. He glanced down at the sweet roll before inhaling the snack with one bite.
And just to make matters worse, a knocking interrupted the young Alchemist's thoughts of many ways to dismember Roy. Of course this action only resulted on Edward chocking on a persistent chunk of food.
"Chew your food before swallowing, Ed," Alphonse said without the tone of pity a normal brother would hold, but all the tone of a mother scolding her child. And they say he's the younger one… Alphonse opened the door the second time this morning to find an older messenger who immediately clicked his shoe heels as he saluted to the younger Elric. Alphonse opened the door a bit wider noting what the messenger most likely carried.
"Sir! I have a message for Major Elric, Sir" He stated not stepping out of his attention stance, as it were. Edward merely glanced over before noting the paper clutched in the messenger's hand. Luckily enough he managed to get the food down its respective tube. Only then did he stroll over to the awaiting message bearer. He waved a hand rather begrudgingly at the man's stance until the soldier hesitantly relaxed.
"No need to be nervous. What's the message?" Edward asked glancing over to his younger brother before taking the paper that was handed to him. When he looked up the soldier merely saluted. At this Edward had to sigh at the persistence of the military's code and could only give a salute. With that the messenger left and Alphonse closed the door before turning to peer over his Brother's shoulder.
"What's in the note?" He asked, eyes scanning over the ink scrawled about the paper. From the hand writing he was very sure that it was Colonel Mustang's penmanship. This would explain the confusion in what the note said. Some words and even letters were foreign to Alphonse which in short, was not right.
"It says something about coming to the mission briefing at 18:00 hours," Edward stated nibbling on his gloved auto-mail hand in concentration. Alphonse was surprised that he was even able to decode that much while he only saw a few selective letters.
"Will you be alright here by yourself?" Edward asked noting the bit in the note that suggested for Al take leave from Central while the mission was taking place. Nor should Alphonse attend the briefing as he normally would.
"I'm coming with you, brother," Alphonse said as if Ed had merely forgotten that the older Elric never left without Al.
"I'm sorry, Al. But it says here to specifically not bring you," Edward said holding out the letter of chicken scratches for Al to 'Read'.
"Brother, I'm not letting you go alone," Alphonse said, "And besides, I can't even read the note let alone follow it,"
"Hm?" Edward blinked and glanced up at his younger brother, "Why can't you read it?" Worry was evident in Edward's voice.
"The handwriting… it's horrible," Alphonse said somewhat monotonously. Edward gave a chuckle as fears were relieved and humor was released. He had to bite back at the thoughts that plagued his mind. Maybe, as time went on Alphonse would slowly drift away from the suit of armor. And anything unordinary could be seen as a symptom of Ed's said fear.
"You're still not coming with me, Al. I don't want you in danger again," Edward muttered, loud enough for Alphonse to hear. Alphonse looked down at the note and then to his brother and recalled all the times Edward had somehow blamed himself for all danger that the two of them faced.
"It's not your fault, Ed," Alphonse soothed somewhat harshly, "I'm coming with you not matter what you say," The armor said, voice rising a bit in attempts to make his brother understand.
"No, Al! You won't and that's final!" Edward shouted, exasperated slightly at his younger brother's foreign actions. He couldn't handle this right now. Not while his memory was still plagued by thoughts of death, not while he had the burdens of previous actions and most certainly not with Alphonse's life at risk if he were to permit the suit of armor accompanying him. Edward stood there, breathing heavier from plain out stress and (though he denies it) fear.
Alphonse stood, taken aback though he'd hate to admit it. Edward normally did not yell at him for such trivial quarrels. Bickering had never escalated this far, this fast. Not only has Edward been acting strange for the past days, Al had notice an evident weariness upon the teen's face alone. Yet his mind still brought him back to the simple fact that Ed had yelled at him. Harsh tones, though not uncommon from his older brother, were not taken lightly by Alphonse. The younger Elric had not been on the receiving side of such anger as often as he should have, ever since his mother passed… ever since the accident. Mentally, the young brother shuddered.
Edward could only stare at his brother. The realization hitting him hard as he could feel the faces Alphonse had worn over those few minutes: pain, hatred, confusion and even regret? Even though Alphonse's helmet of a face could not physically change, Edward still had a sense of his brother's feelings. Something even the prodigy of an Alchemist, belonging to the state at the tender age of 12, could not grasp. Edward dragged his gaze to the wooded floor unable to make eye contact with Alphonse, fearing all his support in the argument would fail miserably. The 'Fullmetal' one's ears perked at the sound of metal scraping on wood. Edward glanced up to watch his brother turn and trod off into the bedroom they shared.
"Al," Edward said with a voice full of regret. He scrambled for something to stop Alphonse. An apology, the simple action of apologizing would do. Sincere, it had to be sincere. Yet Edward couldn't find the words to say and only watched helplessly as his brother closed the bedroom door behind him. Wasn't there anything he could do? Edward berated himself for a period of time. Normally when arguments were unfinished or even took place, the two brothers would settle their differences through a simple sparring match. Now wasn't one of those times. Or so it would seem. Unable to come up with anything to say or to smooth things over, Edward simply dug his hands into his pockets and strode out of the apartment.
''
"You look like doom,"
Edward gave a sharp yelp as the unexpected hand shot out from behind him, resting playfully on his head. Voice and action were soon placed with the familiar face of Maes Hughes. Said face promised the bearing of latest photos of a 'beautiful baby girl' (whom one must note, is not a baby anymore).
Hughes had to admit that he was slightly surprised to find Ed sulking about the Military's courtyard. The serene and placid mood of the area about him contrasted vividly with Edward's seemingly depressing disposition. The fountain gurgled almost joyously, surrounded with flourished trees full with birds singing their sweet lullabies. The Lt. Colonel shuffled his feet on the bright cement path. Hughes had managed to find himself in a rather dangerous position; to his right, nothing but a bench, yet to his left, a seemingly dejected Edward Elric.
"What's it to you, Hughes?" Edward asked, placing a cover up 'smirk' on his face. Facing his superior officer, and good friend he held out his hand for a handshake. Said hand receiving a quizzical look as glasses flashed to look upon the young alchemist.
"Ed, what's wrong," Hughes asked in what onlookers might find an almost 'comical' monotone to his voice. Edward released a long sigh unable to keep his anger, guilt…Hell, any of his emotions inside at this current point in time. Normally he would have plastered a rather cocky smirk upon his face and wave off Hughes' question. But now, Edward found his smile fading into a face that could only be interpreted as 'anger and guilt'. Hughes made a special effort to not pull out the newest addition to his 'Elicia photo collection'.
"It's the Colonel's fault," Ed grumbled out. The expressions on the young alchemist's face had now flopped to utter hatred at the subject. Of course any human in their right mind would have stepped back in fear for their lives yet Hughes found himself slapping Edward on the back a few times as 'comfort'. Edward could only hope that the Lt. Colonel would hit his hand on the metal supports for his auto-mail on his shoulder.
"Roy couldn't have done something that bad!" Hughes exclaimed this with a curt laugh as he finished 'patting' Edward's back. Edward made a mental note to have Al check his back for any bruises, which brought the teen back to the original subject.
"Like hell he did!" Edward said glaring up at the fountain that was but 3 yards away, "I have to go on a mission with that bastard Colonel for God knows how long. And I can't even take Al with us! If that's not bad, then I don't know what the hell is!" Edward grumbled to himself as he sunk down on the wooden beams of the bench that was to the right Hughes. Maes could only roll is eyes, inwardly of course, at Ed's flowery language. Yeah, 'Bastard Colonel' that's a new one. The common nickname for Mustang told Hughes that this situation would not result in the death of either of his 'friends'.
Denial, Hughes thought smiling to himself before turning on his heel. The mission briefing would be taking place soon and he didn't want Edward Elric to be late! The Lt. Colonel grabbed a hold on Edward's shirt collar and began dragging the teen. A way of exiting that had earned him the title of 'Kidnapper look-alike'.
"Wha-? Hughes what are you doing! Let go of me! Godammit, Hughes!" Edward squirmed against his captor in hopes of escape. Hughes could only bark a laugh at the teen's antics and continued to drag the boy along.
"Come off it Ed. Al will understand if you can't take him. He's a reasonable boy. And Roy isn't all that bad," Hughes called behind him as the fuming teenager as if they were speaking of a simple picnic and not a serious mission.
"You speak as if there is no mission involved," Edward said, flinging his arms in a rather sad attempt at escape.
"You speak of it as if it is the end of the world," Hughes noted smiling. He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a picture of his Daughter playing dolls with her Mother. He stopped just to shove said picture in Edward's line of vision.
"Why would the world end with a little girl this cute in it?" He asked, voice switching to the 'Father-Obsessed-With-Daughter' voice
Edward gave a sneer and turned his face away from the picture. It wasn't that he didn't like Elicia. Hell, he was sure that he would adore the little girl upon meeting her. Or rather, Elicia would most likely cling to him. Edward did not know why he had a strong connection with children in general. It may have been the result of having a horrid childhood, or was forced to grow up to soon. One really couldn't tell why or how. It just 'was'.
Silence had fallen about the duo, an eerie one at that. Hughes finally responded upon entering the rather tall and unwelcoming building to Edward's earlier question. By this point, Edward had succumbed to his fate with the crossing of his arms and a flick of his braid, now he just allowed Hughes to drag him to Mustang's office.
"Oh yes, I'm taking you to the briefing if you would like to know,"
"While looking like a kidnapper in process," Edward grumbled to himself scratching his cheek. The alchemist's eyes bulged when he was thrown against a closed door. Pain screamed through the base of his skull and he opened his eyes to glare at the Lt. Colonel.
"Hughes! What the hell was that for?" Edward yelled, rubbing the back of his head. He was about to take out more of his pent up rage on the Lt. Colonel had he not seen that said Lt. Colonel was on the ground. Was that a spirit soaring out through Hughes' nose? Ed tapped Hughes and watched as the man grumbled something and turned over.
"Oh…shit," Hughes groaned and sat up, rubbing the back of his head and adjusted his glasses.
"What?" Ed questioned, still glaring at the Lt. Colonel for pegging him at a wall.
"I forgot completely! Oh no my life is ruined! I'm such a horrible, horrible, horrible person!" Hughes said exclaiming in self-agony.
"What?"
"I forgot completely. I have to go! I promised Elicia that I would be home at lunch to play with her," Hughes exclaimed jumping up and bolting out of the room, "And, Edward. Don't even think of skipping out of the Briefing. I still have 47 pictures of my precious little girl to show you. Bye now, and good luck on your mission," Hughes called over his shoulder before disappearing in clouds of dust.
Edward simply blinked in confusion. All of that, over his kid. God was he a dedicated man. If not depressing. The Alchemist thought to himself before standing up and releasing a sigh. And using pictures as a threat, though as pathetic it may be, it worked surprisingly well.
Edward grumbled to himself and turned on his heel to enter Mustang's office.
"Well this is going to be one hellish mission,"
And we'll become,
Silhouettes when our bodies finally go
Author's Notes: Ah, another chapter under the belt and I am hoping for more reviews to tell me how I'm doing
Oh yeah… about the promised action. I plotted out the next 3 chapters and action is not going to come until next chapter. I promise and will hold true this time! Have faith.
Less than three to you all! 3 –Silent Luminosity
