Disclaimer: I don't own FMA.

We had finally gotten off the train in Resembool.
"Wow," I said, looking around, "I love this place!"
"There's nothing really special." Ed said. I looked at him.
"Nothing special? This is the first time I've been in a quiet place since..." I trailed off, looking at the Major, "Since I left my home." I said. Ed looked at me, surprised.
"You lived in the country?"
"Yes! I had a giant backyard to run around in when I was little, it was the best place ever!" I said, "But I've been stuck in cities for the past few months. This is a nice change of scenery." We were walking down the road when I spotted Lieutenant Breda, and sighed.
"I guess I can only enjoy the scenery for a little bit." I muttered as Breda waved to us.
"Hey!" Breda said. I waved back.
"We're here!" I said, jogging up to him. Armstrong and Ed weren't far behind me.
"You finally brought them here." Breda sighed, looking up at Armstrong. "Hi, Major." He caught sight of Ed and grinned, "Hey, big guy."
"Lieutenant Breda," Ed said, surprised.
I walked ahead of everyone and turned back to shout at them.
"Hey boys," I yelled, "We got a long way ahead of us. Come on!"

"Tell me again, why are we wearing cloaks when we're in a flipping furnace?" I whined, slumping over my donkey. All the others had made it without complaining, but I was built for cold weather. I hated hot weather.
"Because we're cooler with shade on our bodies than without, and the cloaks provide us with shade." Breda pointed out. I groaned.
"Are we there yet?" I asked for the umpteenth time.
"We're close. You can even see the ruins from here," Our guide said. I straightened myself to find I was looking at the ruins. I cheered as we arrived.
"Wahh~ So pretty~" I gasped, looking around. I could tell the expert handcrafting that the place had been built with even when it was in ruins. It was simply thrilling.
"Whoa," Ed said, looking around. Our group had paused at a slightly shaded area.
"Hey!" I heard a voice exclaim from behind a pice of rock. Everyone glanced, and I saw Ed and Armstrong's eyes widen.
"MARIA!" Armstrong burst into sparkled and happy tears, his shirt somehow disappearing as he flexed his muscles before chasing after Maria, who apparently didn't want to get squished by the Major's bear hugs.
"That damn Colonel pulled one over on us," Ed laughed. I patted his shoulder.
"The Colonel may be annoying, but at least we can trust him." I said. Ed nodded, a grin on his face.
"Alright, alright, I'll admit it, the Colonel actually knew what he was doing this time." Ed said. I nodded cheerfully. This was the first time I got to see Ed smile in a long time. It was nice, being able to smile with him. To have even the slightest bit of happiness in this TRAGEDY SHOW.

"NO! MARIA! DON'T LEAVE!" I cried, hugging her tightly. Ed, Armstrong, Breda and I were saying goodbye to Maria. She had decided to go live in Xing for the meantime. MAYBE SHE'D MEET HUGHES THERE!
...I'd like to see that happen...
"Lynette," Maria sweat dropped. I looked up at her with tears in my eyes. I finally let her go.
"You better come back." I said, "And if you don't, I'll drag you back here." Everyone sweat dropped at my threat. Maira smiled at me.
"I won't forget." She said, patting my head. I wiped my eyes and smiled back.
"Ok." I stepped back. Maria faced Armstrong.
"I'd like you to relay a message to the Colonel." She said, "Tell him I am very thankful for what he did for me. I am willing to put my life on the line to pay him back." Maria saluted. Armstrong saluted back, and Maria turned to Ed and held out a hand.
"Goodbye, Edward." She said, shaking his hand. He nodded.
"See you again, someday." He said, letting go. Maria waved as she got on her donkey, following her guides.
"DON'T FORGET US, OK?" I yelled over to her, "SEE YOU LATER!" I could see Maria smile as she waved to me. I waved back frantically until they were out of sight.
"I'll see you again, someday." I whispered to myself.

After the goodbyes, I snuck away to look around the ruins. I gaped at everything, but specifically one thing.
The broken human transmutation circle on the wall. I looked at it closely, examining every detail.
"So, this is what destroyed this place. Gluttony has the rest in his stomach. Still..." I knew I was talking to myself, but I didn't care. I was on to something...
That's when it hit me.
"THAT'S IT!" I cried, jumping up and down in excitement. I had finally found a way I could get myself back home.
The same way Ed would get Ling and Envy out of Gluttony's stomach. I could transmute myself through the gate. It all made sense. I could go home!
But there was one problem. I had forgotten what the whole transmutation circle looked like. I cursed. I would have to go into Gluttony's stomach with Ed, Ling, and Envy to find out the rest of it. I sighed. Goddamnit, it'll take a little longer. So, I took out my notebook and copied down what was left of the transmutation circle, studying it carefully and making sure to get every detail.
I was there for about an hour until Ed came to join me, watching me scribble down the last of the transmutation circle.
"What're you doing?" He asked. I jumped, suddenly noticing he was there.
"Ed," I said urgently, "I found a way I could go home. Back to my world." My words shocked him.
"How?"
"I need to gather some more details, but I have the basic idea." I said. I was so happy. I could finally go back and have a normal life and forget my useless crush on Ed. I could see my friends again. I could go back.
Ed seemed saddened by my report. He caught my gaze, his smoldering golden eyes boring through my brown ones as he took a step toward me.
"Lynette...I," He started, but was cut off.
I dodged an attack from behind me, taking the persons arm and twisting it back as I thrusted him to the ground, putting one foot on him to keep him down.
"What the hell, dude?" I said, then scrutinized the person. I was shocked. "An Ishvalen?"
When I looked up, we were suddenly surrounded by Ishvalens.
"Great... Just great..." I muttered, spacing out a bit. When I finally snapped my attention back, an old Ishvalen woman was speaking.
"Please let him go. He won't hurt you." She said in her crackly old voice, referring to the guy I had trapped. Ed nodded to me and I let him up, and he scurried away into the crowd.
"Why'd you stop them?" Ed asked the old woman, narrowing his eyes. "I thought you hated Amestrians."
"We know not all Amestrians are bad." The woman said.
"We were saved by two Amestrian doctors," the boy who stood beside the woman said.
"You don't mean the Rockbells, do you?" Ed questioned, shocked. I looked at him.
"Winry's parents?" I interjected appropriately, and Ed nodded.
"You're a friend of the Rockbells?" The boy asked in shock. Ed nodded.
"Yeah." He said. I stayed silent. It was now that I really wished I had lived here and grown up with them. I was kind of afraid. I mean, I was a state alchemist surrounded by Ishvalens with no connection to the Rockbells besides meeting Winry. What was I supposed to feel?
"They saved the lives of countless Ishvalens during the civil war. They refused to abandon their posts despite their orders."
"No kidding," Ed breathed, "They were like an aunt and uncle to me."
"They helped until the very end." The old woman said. Ed saddened.
"How... How did they die?" He asked, surprising the old woman and boy. They both immensely sobered into melancholy expressions.
"They were murdered out of cold blood." The woman said, "By an Ishvalen they saved." Ed's eyes widened in hurt and realization.
"Who did it?" He demanded harshly, "Who killed them?!" In the anime, I thought this part was kind of boring. It didn't really matter to me. But in real life, it mattered that someone had lost their parents. I felt horrible for ever thinking that way.
"His face was bandaged," The woman said, "But he was an Ishvalen monk, and his arm was tattooed." Ed made his hands into fists, shaking in anger.
"Can you do something for us?" The woman asked. Ed looked up at her.
"Next time you visit their graves, can you give them our thanks, and our apologies."

We had arrived back in Resembool early the next day. I was soar from sleeping on the donkey, and was stretching out my limbs.
"I'm going to stay here for a little but longer." I overheard Ed tell Breda and Armstrong. They nodded.
"Hey, can I stay too?" I asked, skipping over to them, "I need to get away from all the big city noise for a bit. Is that alright with you, Ed?" I asked cheerfully. He nodded, surprised at my interest to stay here.
"Sure." He said.
And so, Ed and I waved to Armstrong and Breda as they left for the train station.

Ed and I had decided to stop by the cemetery with some flowers to visit Ed's mom's grave and Winry's parent's grave. We were walking down the peaceful country road, and I admired the scenery.
"You know," I said absently, "It's been so long since I've seen green mountains. All the space, grass, wildlife. It makes me feel... Like I'm back at home." I sighed nostalgically. Ed glanced at me.
"What was your home like?" He asked. I was dumbfounded for a moment, not expecting the sudden question.
"Hmm... I lived in a two story house which was probably the size of two normal houses because of the addition we made, it was painted a gray-blue, and our backyard was at least an acre. It was bordered by really huge old trees, and I used to take lots of walks on a path in the back of the yard, and on that path was an old dead tree that I practiced my martial arts on." I said, "I grew up with my mom, dad, and brother there. My mom was a state police officer... Heh... My dad was an English teacher... And my brother was four years younger than me. We knew our neighbors very well, and most of my friends lived close to me. But for the most part, I liked being alone. " I looked at Ed and smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, I was rambling."
"No, it's interesting." Ed said and I blushed.
"It's not that special." I breathed. But what Ed said made me feel good. He wanted to know more about me. That was very nice.
"What were your friends like?" Ed asked curiously.
"I have two best friends, Katya and Emma. They're both really beautiful and talented and I love them very much. I've known them for around seven to eight years. I admire them a lot, even though many other people didn't like them. But I try to look at the good traits in people, and even if they hurt me, I still want to see the good in them. I may not be the politest, prettiest, or the most talented, but I love my friends and that's enough for me." I said. I know I was a bit foolish, letting myself get hurt for such a small reason, but it was true. That's what humans do. They get hurt, they feel pain. They help, they love, they heal. And they learn.
"Don't underestimate yourself. Y-you're... P-pretty too," He said, also getting red. I stared at him, then suddenly have him a big hug.
"I have just promoted you from friend to best friend!" I exclaimed cheerily. Ed blushed even more and I grinned at him.
"Thank you," I said, letting him go. I grabbed his hand and held it in my own.
"Lynette, w-what are you..." Ed stuttered. I stuck my tongue out at him.
"I always hold hands with my best friends." I said, pulling him along. I was secretly thrilled that Ed actually let me hold his hand as we walked. I smiled as we walked along.
That's when the graveyard came in sight. I saw someone in it, no doubt visiting a grave. I heard Ed gasp. I must've done the same.
Oh no, I forgot.
The person turned slightly, spotting us. I squeezed Ed's hand reassuringly before letting go. The person looked at us, golden eyes meeting mine.
The man that stood at Trisha's grave.
It was Hoenhiem.

Hey guys! OHH THE FLUFF BOMB! Yay! I actually liked writing this chapter a lot. BUT UGH! I swear, after every chapter I write, I feel emotionally drained. But, on the other hand, I love writing this story. I have gotten so many amazing reviews from you guys!
Anyway, how's the story going so far? I PUT SWEET PUPPY-LOVE STUFF IN HERE! It's soo CUTE! But Hoenhiem ruined the mood...Aww... And Maria Ross is alive and going to Xing! Hughes is also in Xing... But at least it's a big country!
Questions, comments, concerns?
My lovely readers, please review~
Thanks!