Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom, nor do I own Fullmetal Alchemist. However, the unique plots and events I put the characters through are original creations of my own mind. But, I'd love to own and coddle both.

Rays of golden sunlight beamed through the forest canopy, casting shadows upon the four...or three...sleeping forms below. Exhaustion had gotten the best of them, and quickly fell asleep on the hard earth. Curled up in a heap was Edward Elric, using his own briefcase as a pillow. Opposite of his resting form was Danny Phantom, no longer associated as Danny Fenton. The head of Sam Manson rested on his shoulder, now beginning to rouse slightly as her most hated enemy - light - lay right in her closed eyes.

In the center of the small forest grounds they had stopped in was an array, the center of it producing a small fire. Alphonse Elric, presence signified by the suit of armor attached to his soul, having been the one to draw the array and alchemically produce the fire, not truly needing sleep in the physical sense at all. He was leaning against a tree, head held low, distant in thought and resting his mind.

The four were not only running from the military, but now avoiding artificial humans: homunculi. Their intentions were hidden, and they did not know what they wanted of them. Or, Danny, really. In fact, it was their fault entirely that the Elrics had even met Phantom or Manson.

Amethyst eyes flickering open, Sam hissed cat-like to the sunshine, ducking her head back into the safety of the shadows of the trees. Too late. The sunlight had already woken her, and her mind insisted she did not fall asleep again. She blatantly ignored the fact her head was resting on Danny's shoulder, rather glad no one else was awake to see.

Grumbling, she stood up, still feeling rather strange wearing white. The last time she had done so, she was...hmm, four years old? A grin spreading on her face at the thought, she examined their surroundings, or, lack thereof. It was all but trees, the horizon disappearing into more groves and thick, dark bark, the scene only distorted by the morning sun that wafted down through the canopy.

Danny should be having his re-test today...and...oh, crap, the 'Animals Have Feelings, Too' rally was today! Dammit! Sam gritted her teeth, punching the air. The incident with the Lunch Lady had only deepened her passion for being a vegetarian, and she was heading the opening speech for the rally! If there was one thing she did get from her parents, it was the knack to make others see your point. Sam wondered if her and Danny's picture was on the back of milk cartons with 'Missing' on them yet.

"Oh. You're awake." Sam froze, turning around to see Al lifting his head, looking to her. She laughed nervously at herself, mentally cursing for doing the ridiculous beating-something-invisible dance.

"Uh, yeah. Stupid sun got me up." Glaring at the sunlight, Sam shook her fist at it, and heard Al chuckle. Smiling, she leaned against the base of a tree, crossing her bare arms over her chest as she looked to Alphonse.

"How old are you?"

"Fourteen."

"Then how can you fit in that suit?" Sam marveled, picturing a much older boy would have to fit in something like that. Sure, she couldn't, but Sam would always try. Al sighed, and shifted a little.

"Let's just say I...fit a bit better than most people would believe." Sam nodded. He seemed always to get fidgety when questioning his armor, so for now, she would stop being Miss Interrogator.

"You like him, don't you?" Al suddenly asked, and Sam lost her balance, sliding from her leaning position on the tree, and falling on her back on the ground. Sitting up, she rubbed her head.

"Ooouuu, oww...why...haha, why would you say that?" Sam stuttered, sitting beside Alphonse now, grumbling at her fall.

"I dunno. I just..I can see it." Al laughed at how absurd he sounded, but did not hear Sam join in his laughter. Turning, he saw her deeply examining Danny in his sleep, her eyes reading complete immersion in thought. Her short, black hair was a bit wild, but it was managed well enough. The long, white sleeveless button down shirt from Izumi now sported some stains, but it flattered her form nicely, as well as the black pants. But the boots...didn't go at all.

"I am SO not short..." Al and Sam's attention snapped to Ed as he stirred in his sleep, bashing at the ground, finally resting in a different position. The two giggled, and finally Al got up.

"I'd better go get some food." Sam shot up. It was her time to shine. If she couldn't go to the 'Animals Have Feelings, Too' rally, she'd still get her message across!

"I vote for some berries and fruits." Al just shrugged at Sam's enthusiastic suggestion, but knew his meat-loving brother would not approve of the light breakfast. Still, the two left into the tree groves, Al marking their path as they went.

Danny stirred, feeling a nudge on his arm. Closing his eyes tighter, he shifted, unconsciously blowing a strand of pure white hair from his face. Another nudge. He swatted at the air, whining, muttering something about 'an extra five minutes, Jazz'. Poke.

Sitting up straight, eyes open, he glared, noticing Edward stumbling back from him, but quickly regaining his balance. Rubbing the sleep from his green eyes, Danny yawned.

"What?" He groaned, quite content with the sleep he had been receiving. At least, until Ed decided to go on an investigative poking spree.

"Nothing." Edward whined as an excuse, quickly pushing aside the matter to look around the camp, his brother nor Sam anywhere to be found. He scratched the back of his neck, but his previous thoughts would not go away.

I can't deny it...he's a ghost...but, where did he and Sam come from? How does he fly? And why can I touch him only some of the time? But...most of all, what do those homunculi want with him? They seemed to have met already... Ed mused on all these thoughts, instinct yearning for answers. His natural curiosity was often his downfall, but it was impulsive. And not his curiosity was getting the best of him, wondering where Al and Sam had gone off to.

Sighing, he put his fists on his hips, and turned back to Danny, who was, by now, sitting up straight, legs crossed. Before he could begin to quench his curiosity, Danny spoke up.

"What were you pokin' me for?" Ed laughed nervously, but it spiraled down to an ashamed sigh.

"Why is it that I can touch you sometimes? But...ghosts aren't even supposed to exist!" Ed threw his hands up into the air, peering through the canopy to the azure morning sky. The past day had turned his knowledge upside-down, inside-out, and screwed around with everything he once believed. Danny just laughed.

"Well, it's called being 'intangible'. I can make myself go through solid objects." Ed turned, nodding slightly. He was getting answers, but ones just around the edge. He could barely decipher what was being said now. Stopping his fidgeting, he collapsed to the ground.

"Still...what really troubles me is that those homuncli want you...well, I'd presume you, seeing as they were raving about a 'Ghost Boy'. There aren't any others like you, are there?" Ed asked, chuckling slightly, and hopeful. Danny just shook his head, but suddenly remembered something.

"Wait - there is one. His name is Plasmius, and...I think they already have him..." For the first time since their fateful encounter in Wisconsin when the two discovered one another's secrets, Danny actually was worried for Vlad's well being.

"They already have him?" Ed asked, knowing this could not be good news. For a few minutes, the two sat there in silence. Ed was trying to piece together everything, though it seemed with every growing thought, more problems posed themself to him.

What would the homuncli want with Ghosts...as far as I know, they're trying to create another Philosopher's Stone, but that would need a massive amount of human sacrifices, not Ghost sacrifices... Something donned on Ed.

"Danny, you seemed to know who they were. Have you met those homunculi before?"

Oh, crap! Danny thought. If he answered the question correctly, he would be telling Ed he and Sam were from another world, or at least Sam said, and that they had passed through the Gate. He would also be admitting he was the exact one they seemed to be after. And yet...it seemed he had little choice. How else would he and Sam get back to Amity?

"Yeah, actually...they kinda...kidnapped me...and Sam..." Ed's focus was solely on Danny now, his words sparking something in his mind. Ed did not know what the homunculis creating, only knowing it could not be good.

"How?" Ed asked, the word encompassing nearly everything. A play-by-play would be nice. Danny sighed.

Here we go...

"Well, the one that turns into other people-"

"Envy."

"...a, yeah, sure. Anyways, she-"

"He."

"Really! I swear it was a damn scary girl...if Envy is compared with Sam, Sam is the perfect angel. Uh...anyway, he turned into me and Sam's best friend, Tucker."

Name's a bit too ironic to even be funny. Ed thought, shivering. Because one person he despised bore that name, the name itself was loathsome to him.

"When we were at a bookstore, we didn't know who Lust was, and...wait, Lust is a 'she', right?" Ed smacked his head, shaking it in disbelief. How aloof was Danny? Danny just gestured the question aside, waving his hands in the air as though to erase the spoken words.

"Okay, okay! Anyway, she attacked me, but me and Tucker...or Envy, really, flew back to my place and we went into my parent's basement. After that, Sam came down and found me, and when we heard Lust coming and tried to get away, Tucker changed back into Envy...but wasn't the real Tucker...and nearly kicked my head in. That's when Envy and Lust started talking, and a fat homunculis-"

"Gluttony."

"Would you stop that!" Danny shrieked, but Ed just smirked, crossing his arms and leaning back against the base of a tree. Sighing, Danny smoothed back his hair, and controlled himself after a few calm breaths.

"If I can go on..." Green eyes shot a glare to a pair of amber ones, but they just remained calm ",Gluttony and Wrath came in through the ghost portal, along with-"

"A Ghost what?"

---

"GYEAA!" Danny attempted to pull his hair out, shouting to the sky. Ed leapt back a bit, sweat beading down his face as he waved his hands in an earnest attempt to push aside the invisible matter of Danny's irritation. Danny's chest heaved, and any minute now, Ed would guess steam would billow from his nose. Even his eyes were glowing fiercer!

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry!" As Danny calmed himself down, Ed sighed in relief, and smoothed out the maroon sleeves of his jacket. Once Danny had gotten over his irritation of being interrupted, he continued.

"Long story short, they kidnapped us, they lost us, Izumi found us and cleaned us up, those two military men-" Danny paused, waiting in silence for Ed to correct him for something, like whatever their names were. He said nothing, focus on Danny.

"They came, tore up the place, I came back, thought I saw you with Plasmius, attacked you, and the rest is history...I hope..." Danny remembered their not-so-subtle meeting the previous day, but Ed did not heed of it. Instead, he remained deep in thought. Stretching out, Danny slumped against the tree, still a bit drowsy.

Guess running from an other-worldly military and crazed psycho homunculis really drains ya... Turning his attention to muffled voices and some rustling in the distance, Alphonse and Sam appeared before the make-shift camp, both in a much better mood since last night. Carried in their arms were numerous edible berries and herbs, Sam looking rather pleased with herself.

"What? No meat?" Ed whined, scraping through the contents in the arms of his younger brother. Sam scowled.

"Why do we need meat, anyways? It's just cold-hearted murder! That's why me and Al found some wholesome grains and berries." Ed frowned at such words Sam spoke.

"I like meat. Its tasty."

"Your saying a cute, innocent squirrel cut down in its prime is delicious!" Sam shrieked. Al tip-toed over to Danny, he seeming to become pale. Or, rather, paler than usual.

"Time to run?" Al whispered.

"Maybe I am!" Ed stood up, beginning to raise his voice.

"Time to run." Danny frowned, and the two soon bolted away from the camp, Danny flying as fast as he could, swerving between the tall, sturdy trees, Al right at his heels. They attempted to ignore the screams, thumps, and cries behind them.

So much for a peaceful breakfast... Al thought, Danny's mind almost reflecting the same exact thought.

Author's Note: I apologize for the extreme seperation of chapters before. I'm attempting to stay away from the computer more and focus on more life problems outside of the PC. I hope you liked the last two long-awaited chapters.